President Donald Trump has suggested that US television networks critical of his administration should have their broadcast licences revoked.
The comments came as he praised ABC for suspending late-night host Jimmy Kimmel, whose monologue about the death of conservative influencer Charlie Kirk sparked backlash.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on his return from a state visit to the UK, Trump claimed that about 97% of media coverage of him is negative. He said that network owners currently hold broadcast licences and questioned whether those licences should be “taken away.”
The trigger for these remarks was Kimmel’s recent show monologue, in which he accused Trump supporters of politicising Kirk’s death and criticised the broader political reaction. ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live! “indefinitely” following pressure from both the public and government regulators.
FCC Chair Brendan Carr publicly condemned Kimmel’s remarks as “offensive and insensitive,” hinting at possible regulatory consequences. Local station group Nexstar announced it would stop airing the show, citing similar concerns.
Legal experts and critics point out that revoking licences over editorial content would likely violate the First Amendment of the US Constitution.
FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, a Democrat, warned that threatening to remove licences in response to criticism is an attack on free speech. She said the FCC lacks authority to penalise broadcasters simply for content it dislikes.
The FCC, under current law, licenses individual local stations rather than national networks like ABC, CNN, NBC or Fox, complicating the legal basis for revoking a network licence as Trump suggested.
Former President Barack Obama and various media industry and free-speech advocates have accused the Trump administration of pushing censorship and using regulatory agencies to punish critics. Some see this episode as part of a broader trend of political pressure on the Fourth Estate.
For broadcasters, this moment underscores concerns about editorial independence, regulatory overreach, and the vulnerability of media institutions in a polarised political climate.
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Trump suggests networks critical of him could lose licences amid Kimmel fallout