The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday examined how ABC News moderated a pre-election televised debate between President Biden and Republican rival Donald Trump, as well as how ABC News moderated a pre-election televised debate between President Biden and Republican rival Donald Trump.・Dismissed complaints about Vice President Kamala Harris' appearance on “Night Live.”
Outgoing FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel said in a statement that the commission rejects allegations that “seek to weaponize the FCC's licensing authority in a manner fundamentally inconsistent with the First Amendment.” said.
In September, President Trump asked the FCC to revoke the license of ABC, which is owned by Walt Disney Co., after it hosted the September 10 presidential debate.
President Trump filed a lawsuit against Paramount's CBS in October, calling the 60 Minutes interview with Harris “misleading” and asking the commission to force the network to release the recording.
Trump, who won the Nov. 5 election, will be inaugurated for a second term on Monday.
The FCC has rejected the American Rights Center's claim that a “60 Minutes'' interview was distorted, saying the nonprofit group failed to provide sufficient evidence that the broadcast engaged in “intentional and intentional falsification of news.'' He claimed that there was not.
CBS reported that President Trump has canceled his scheduled interview on “60 Minutes.''
Rosenworcel said President Trump is asking the FCC to revoke the TV station's license because he disagrees with its content and coverage, which he said is a threat to the First Amendment.
“The FCC should not be the president's speech police,” Rosenworcel said.
The FCC, an independent federal agency, issues eight-year licenses to individual stations, not networks.
Brendan Carr, President Trump's pick to head the FCC, criticized Comcast-owned NBC for having Harris appear on Saturday Night Live just before the election. The FCC noted that NBC provided Trump with comparable time and viewership at the two sporting events.
Trump's transition team and Mr. Carr did not respond to requests for comment.
Carr told reporters in November that the FCC would investigate all related issues, including whether broadcasters were meeting their duty to act in the public interest.
In 2017, then-FCC Chairman Ajit Pai, a Republican appointed by President Trump, raised concerns that the FCC could challenge NBC's license after the network aired a story that President Trump declared false. He rejected his suggestion that there was a sexual relationship.
Rosenworcel also said the network denied a petition not to renew the Philadelphia Fox television station's license.
Advocacy groups asked the FCC in 2023 to deny renewal of WTXF-TV's license, saying its parent company FOX, which also owns FOX News, aired “false information about election fraud” about the 2020 presidential election. . The group, the Media and Democracy Project, announced Thursday that it plans to appeal the decision.
