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FCC Prepared to Give Ruling on ‘The View’
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FCC Prepared to Give Ruling on ‘The View’

The Federal Communications Commission is reportedly preparing to make a decision that could have significant consequences for ABC's daytime talk show "The View" and several Disney-owned television stations.

According to a report from Bloomberg, the FCC is expected by the end of August to determine that "The View" does not qualify as a "bona fide" news program under federal broadcast rules. If that determination is made, it would mean the show is subject to equal-time requirements when interviewing political candidates, potentially requiring comparable opportunities for rival candidates seeking the same office.

Bloomberg, citing unnamed sources, also reported that the FCC intends to advance its review of several ABC station license renewals to a formal agency hearing. That step moves the process closer to the possibility of license revocation, although such an outcome remains rare and would likely face extensive legal challenges.


The stations involved include ABC-owned outlets serving some of the nation's largest television markets, including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Houston, San Francisco, Raleigh-Durham, and Fresno, California.

At the center of the dispute is a February episode of "The View" featuring an interview with Texas Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico. Under FCC regulations, programs that do not qualify for the "bona fide" news exemption generally must provide comparable broadcast opportunities to opposing candidates for the same office. Critics argue that ABC failed to meet that requirement after airing the interview without extending similar opportunities to Talarico's rivals.

Disney is expected to challenge any adverse FCC rulings if they are issued.

The broader investigation into ABC's station licenses follows complaints filed by several conservative organizations, including the Media Research Center, America First Legal, the Center for American Rights, and the Article III Project. Those groups contend that ABC's Disney-owned stations have demonstrated political bias that should be considered during the license renewal process.

The increased regulatory scrutiny appears to have had an immediate effect on "The View's" booking decisions. According to Semafor, the program has noticeably reduced its interviews with political candidates since becoming the subject of the FCC's review.

Earlier this year, the FCC signaled that it intended to take a stricter approach to enforcing federal broadcast rules governing candidate appearances. In January, the agency reminded broadcasters that it would enforce the Communications Act of 1934's "statutory equal opportunities requirement."


The FCC also stated at the time that it had not been presented with evidence showing that the interview segments of any currently airing daytime or late-night talk show qualified for the "bona fide" news exemption. That statement suggested the agency was willing to reconsider assumptions that had long allowed entertainment-based interview programs to avoid equal-time obligations.

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has made it clear that he intends to apply the regulations as written.

"On my watch, we're going to enforce this regulation," Carr said.

Carr has also argued that major television networks have for years treated their daytime and late-night talk shows as exempt from equal-time rules, even when, in his view, their political coverage appeared driven by partisan considerations rather than traditional news reporting.

If the FCC ultimately rules that "The View" is not a bona fide news program, the decision could reshape how daytime talk shows handle political interviews during election cycles.

Written by Arthur Higgens - July 20, 2026