U.S.FOLLOW-UP

ABC tells FCC its early license probe is coercive pressure

Disney's filing says the FCC is using early license renewals to avoid judicial review; the regulator has not answered in the reports we have.

On air: Chip Darnell and Hank Ledger on BBN Overnight
Published 12:03 AM ET, Tuesday, October 13, 2026

At a glance

First reported by Fox News: “ABC accuses FCC of trying to 'inflict maximal coercive pressure' with probe against network”.
Covered on BBN on Tuesday, October 13, 2026, at 12:03 AM ET on BBN Overnight, by Chip Darnell and Hank Ledger.
Topics: FCC, ABC.
BBN covered this story before: Eric Trump backs FCC probe into ABC's revised Anduril report (October 12).

The reporting behind this segment. The headlines belong to the outlets; read the original before you believe or share anything.

Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorNew tonight, ABC's parent company Disney says in a filing that the FCC is trying to inflict maximal coercive pressure on the network, Fox News reports.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe filing says the FCC is using early broadcast license renewals to avoid judicial review, which is a dry way of saying nobody gets to ask a judge.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorThat follows Eric Trump backing Senator Bernie Moreno's call for an investigation into ABC's erroneous report about his family and Anduril Pentagon contracts, a story ABC has already revised.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorRevised.
Chip Darnell · U.S. News AnchorYes, so the correction is done, and now the argument is about who gets to ask for the next one. Everyone involved has a lawyer and a very long weekend.
Hank Ledger · Lead AnchorThe FCC hasn't answered the filing in the reports we have, so the paperwork just sits there, waiting for somebody to sign something.