Written by: Henry Szuchman
On Tuesday, October 6, 2026, a federal court heard arguments in a significant legal challenge between The Walt Disney Company and the Trump administration over the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) unusually early review of Disney’s broadcast licenses. Disney asked the court to block the review, alleging the administration violated the First Amendment by using the FCC to threaten and punish the company for airing content Trump dislikes. The FCC responded that the review is part of a probe into whether Disney’s diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives violated federal rules.
How the Dispute Began
Tensions between Disney’s network, ABC, and Trump have been escalating for years. In 2024, ABC anchor George Stephanopoulos said on air that Trump had been found liable for rape, though a jury had found sexual abuse. Trump sued ABC for defamation, and ABC paid millions to settle. Trump has also repeatedly called for ABC to fire comedian Jimmy Kimmel, who frequently uses his talk show to mock Trump, and to cancel The View, whose political commentators have been accused of having a liberal bias. FCC Chairman Brendan Carr, whom Trump appointed, has echoed those complaints. In September 2025, after Kimmel made remarks about Charlie Kirk that some found offensive, Carr publicly criticized Kimmel, and ABC temporarily pulled Kimmel off the air.
In April 2026, after a Kimmel joke about Trump, Trump called for Kimmel’s firing and for ABC to lose its licenses. A day later, Carr announced the FCC’s early review. Prior to this instance, the FCC had not initiated an early review in over 50 years. The last one was in 1972, when the FCC questioned whether Leflore Broadcasting had misrepresented its plans after it proposed playing R&B but then switched to country music.
The FCC’s Early Review
Television stations need FCC licenses to use the public airwaves. These licenses are typically renewed every eight years without much fanfare. Carr ordered early reviews of eight ABC stations whose licenses were not due to expire until 2028 through 2031.
Commentators note that the threat of losing a license can pressure networks and raise concern about government interference in broadcasting decisions. The FCC rejects that framing, with a spokesperson saying, “All broadcasters have a legal obligation to operate in the public interest—even Disney. The FCC has been examining claims that Disney engaged in illegal DEI discrimination for over a year.”
The Legal Arguments
The First Amendment protects the freedom of speech and of the press against government prohibition. The Supreme Court reaffirmed this only two years ago, in NRA v. Vullo, unanimously ruling that government officials may not “use the power of the State to punish or suppress disfavored expression.”
Disney’s lawsuit alleges that the FCC is trying to coerce ABC to alter its “exercise of editorial discretion.” Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro has said “We’re going to stand up to what we believe is journalistic integrity.” Disney centers its argument around the First Amendment, citing judicial precedent and the principle that “political speech” is “at the core of what the First Amendment is designed to protect.”
The FCC’s response primarily focused on procedure, arguing that the agency has not made a final decision, so Disney sued too early and in the wrong court. Disney would first need to complete the FCC’s internal adjudication process before seeking review in an appeals court, and must show immediate harm, which the FCC says is absent because ABC’s licenses remain valid during the review.
Meanwhile, fundraising groups for Republican congressional candidates filed briefs supporting the FCC’s argument. Yet support for Disney is not confined to one party. Mark Fowler, a Republican who chaired the FCC under President Ronald Reagan, filed a statement supporting Disney and said, “What Carr is doing is unconstitutional.” Bruce Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, called it “part of a wide effort by the Trump administration to intimidate the press — and to try to coerce out of news organizations the type of coverage the president wants to see.”
The Possible Outcomes
Disney seems to be arguing that it’s already been harmed. During the hearing, it asserted, “Our concern is that we are chilled. We are making different editorial decisions,” adding that ABC must “sit with our head on the guillotine and wonder if anything we say is going to make that come down.” This may be supported by Kimmel’s claim from earlier this year that FCC threats prevented the network from broadcasting his interview with James Talarico, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in Texas.
Nonetheless, each side faces a hurdle. Disney must show that a pending decision already caused a constitutional injury. The FCC must explain why an unprecedented early review arrived a day after Trump’s public demand. The case presents two separate questions: whether the Court may hear Disney’s claim, and whether the review amounts to restrictions on speech.
It is unclear how the Court will rule. The Court may agree with the FCC on procedure and grant its motion to dismiss, never reaching the merits of the First Amendment claim. At the same time, according to The New York Times, the judge at Tuesday’s hearing appeared “skeptical” of the FCC’s substantive argument that their review concerned ABC’s DEI practices rather than “Mr. Trump’s many angry complaints about the network’s programming.”
No matter how the Court rules, this case captures its moment: a country that values free speech now watches as a talk-show joke prompts a Constitutional battle between a media giant and the federal government.
Sources:
Am. Broad. Co. v. FCC, No. 26-cv-2902 (D.D.C. 2026).
American Civil Liberties Union et al., In re Early License Renewal Applications of Disney’s ABC Stations, MB Docket No. 26-131 (F.C.C. July 29, 2026).
David Folkenflik, Disney, ABC. Battle Trump’s FCC in court over free speech protections, NPR (Oct. 6, 2026).
David Shephardson, Disney lawyer says US seeks to censor, control ABC broadcasts, Reuters (Oct. 6, 2026).
Erik Larson & Zoe Tillman, Disney Lawyer Says FCC Holding a ‘Guillotine’ Over ABC’s Head, Bloomberg L. (Oct. 6, 2026).
In re Leflore Broad. Co., 36 F.C.C.2d 101 (1972).
Jim Rutenberg & John Koblin, Battle Between Disney and the FCC Moves to the Courts, New York Times (Oct. 6, 2026).
Joe Flint, Meet the Disney Lawyer Leading Fight Against the FCC, Wall St. J. (Oct. 6, 2026).
John Vile, A closer look at ABC’s lawsuit against the FCC, Free Speech Center (Sep. 1, 2026).
Nat’l Rifle Ass’n of Am. v. Vullo, 602 U.S. 175 (2024).