The Walt Disney Company, ABC and a number of its stations on Tuesday sued the Federal Communications Commission, seeking to stop an early license renewal process that they say is an attack by the Trump administration.
\n\nIn April, the FCC ordered Disney’s eight owned-and-operated television stations to file their broadcast license renewals ahead of schedule. That order came amid a probe into ABC’s “The View” program, as well as a long-running investigation into diversity, equity and inclusion practices at Disney.
\n\nAll eight of the ABC stations whose licenses were put in jeopardy by the FCC are part of Tuesday’s lawsuit.
\n\nThe move from the FCC also came after the White House and President Donald Trump himself assailed ABC late-night comedian Jimmy Kimmel for a joke about the first lady Melania Trump.
\n\nThe lawsuit specifically cites Trump’s own social media posts, including one in which he complained that late-night TV hosts “are almost 100% Negative to President Donald J. Trump” and asked if broadcast licenses should “be terminated?”
\n\n“Acting through the Federal Communications Commission, the Administration has waged a retaliatory campaign against ABC for a single reason: it disapproves of what ABC broadcasts,” the suit states. “That campaign began in this…
Original source: https://www.nbcnews.com/