FCC Seeks Dismissal of ABC Suit Over TV Licenses

The Federal Communications Commission has asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by ABC; its parent company, Disney; and eight ABC-owned TV stations challenging the agency's early review of the stations' broadcast licenses.

The FCC argued in a motion to dismiss filed Thursday in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., that if ABC and Disney obtained the injunction they are seeking, it would prevent the agency from analyzing evidence in its ongoing investigation and hobble its "efforts to investigate and resolve serious allegations that Disney has engaged in unlawful discrimination."

"Plaintiffs, in return, would only free themselves from the burdens of proving their case in administrative proceedings," the motion stated.

The FCC also argued that the court lacks jurisdiction over the case, saying Congress has directed judicial review of FCC orders to federal appeals courts and many licensing matters specifically to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

The lawsuit was filed on Aug. 18 after the FCC called the licenses of eight local stations in major markets across the country up for early renewal, raising concerns from press freedom advocates and some elected Democrats.

The lawsuit followed months of tension between the Trump administration and ABC, which alleged that the administration has used the FCC to retaliate against the network over its programming and editorial decisions.

"If the Administration gets its way, the message to every media company in the country will be unmistakable: tell only the stories the Administration deems favorable, or face the coercive machinery of the federal government," the complaint stated.

"In such a world, the press could in no way be described as free," the lawsuit noted.

Broadcast stations need FCC licenses to use public airwaves. Although license revocations are rare, the threat of losing a license can raise concerns about government interference in editorial programming decisions.

Broadcast stations have broad First Amendment protections over programming choices.

The FCC's Media Bureau ordered the early reviews in April, even though the stations' licenses were not due for renewal until between 2028 and 2031. ABC said the FCC had not ordered an early license renewal in more than half a century.

The order came a day after President Donald Trump urged ABC to fire late-night host Jimmy Kimmel over a joke about first lady Melania Trump.

The FCC disputed ABC's retaliation allegations, arguing that Disney's response to an antidiscrimination investigation that began in March 2025 prompted the early renewal process.

The agency said Disney's responses to its information requests were "deficient and nonresponsive" and that it has not reached any conclusions about the discrimination allegations.

FCC Chair Brendan Carr has separately defended the FCC's investigation into whether Disney's diversity, equity, and inclusion practices violate federal antidiscrimination laws.

"The balance of equities and the public interest just as clearly weigh against enjoining the Commission's investigation," the FCC wrote in its motion to dismiss.

"Broadcasters are highly regulated parties subject to the Commission's comprehensive oversight. Licenses grant them exclusive access — awarded for free — to highly valuable portions of the electromagnetic spectrum, an important and finite public resource."

U.S. District Judge Loren AliKhan, an appointee of former President Joe Biden, has scheduled a hearing for Oct. 6.

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