FCC Chairman Brendan Carr defends actions against ABC, cites public‑interest duty

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr said the agency’s review of eight ABC local broadcast licenses is meant to enforce broadcasters’ obligation to serve the public interest. In an interview on Fox Business, Carr argued that access to the airwaves is a public resource subsidized by the government, and that broadcasters must honor that exchange.

ABC has accused the FCC of retaliating against the network for the political content of its programs and filed a formal objection to the early license review. The network also challenged Carr’s attempt to apply equal‑time rules to the talk show “The View,” a move the FCC previously deemed unnecessary for bona‑fide news programs. Carr maintained that the review is unrelated to any political pressure and is intended to restore standards for news media.