ABC takes FCC to task over equal airtime dispute involving The View

ABC reprimanded the Federal Communications Commission in a new court filing over the agency’s rule targeting The View over its one-sided interview with Texas Democratic state Rep. James Talarico without providing equal airtime to opposing candidates.

In January, the FCC published guidelines clarifying how the equal time rule is enforced. Bona fide news coverage has historically been exempted from the rule, but late-night and daytime talk shows are no longer exempt under the Trump administration. The FCC, led by Chairman Brendan Carr, claims the entertainment-oriented programming can be “motivated by partisan purposes.”