Washington DC - President Donald Trump and the head of his Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently demanded that daytime and late-night shows provide more screentime for Republican politicians.
On Wednesday, FCC Chair Brendan Carr issued a public notice, which argued that programs "motivated by partisan purposes" are violating federal equal opportunities regulations by "unfairly putting their thumbs on the scale for one political candidate or set of candidates over another."
Carr specifically singled out The View, an ABC News daytime talk show with a panel that is highly critical of the president and his administration.
In an X post shared later that day, Carr further argued that legacy TV networks have assumed for years that such shows "qualify as 'bona fide news' programs – even when motivated by purely partisan political purposes."
"Today, the FCC reminded them of their obligation to provide all candidates with equal opportunities," he added.
President Trump appeared to cheer on Carr's effort by sharing a Truth Social post with a link to an LA Times article on the news. Carr later shared a screenshot of the president's post on X.
Are Donald Trump and Brendan Carr waging war on free speech?
The notice comes as Carr – who once labeled himself a staunch defender of free speech – has used his role to aggressively target networks, broadcasters, and media figures critical of the president and conservative ideals by issuing threats, launching investigations, applying pressure on companies, and filing legal actions.
His efforts managed to get comedian Jimmy Kimmel's late-night show briefly canceled, and are believed to be behind CBS News' recent decision to cancel comedian Stephen Colbert's late-night show.
Carr's leadership has been met with heavy criticism from both sides of the political aisle, as many see him overstepping and abusing power.
Anna Gomez, the FCC's lone Democratic commissioner, told Politico on Wednesday that Carr's order marks "an escalation in this FCC's ongoing campaign to censor and control speech."
"Broadcast stations have a constitutional right to carry newsworthy content, even when that content is critical of those in power," Gomez said, adding that it will not change "simply because of this Administration’s desire to silence its critics."