US agency investigating if ABC’s The View violated equal time rules for political candidates

WASHINGTON - The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is opening an investigation into whether ABC’s The View daytime talk show violated equal time rules for interviews with political candidates after an appearance by a Democratic Texas Senate candidate this week, a source told Reuters on Feb 7.

The Republican-led FCC said in January that daytime and late-night TV talk shows are no longer considered “bona fide” news programmes that are exempt from equal time rules that require them to give airtime to the views of opposing candidates.

In September, FCC chairman Brendan Carr said the agency should consider reviewing whether The View runs afoul of equal time rules.

President Donald Trump has repeatedly pushed Mr Carr to take action against US broadcasters and criticised networks for what he views as one-sided coverage. The move is the first significant step by the FCC to go after networks for interviews with political candidates.

Talk shows were previously exempt

Until January, talk shows have qualified for the equal opportunities exemption as genuine news interviews, ever since the FCC Media Bureau granted an exemption to the interview portion of Jay Leno’s The Tonight Show in 2006. Networks have relied on the ruling as a precedent for recent interviews with political candidates.

The FCC did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Disney and its ABC News unit declined to comment on Feb 7.

The probe was first reported by Fox News Digital. Mr Trump posted a link to the story on his social media account.

FCC commissioner Anna Gomez, a Democrat, denounced the probe. She suggested it was meant to bully networks and said broadcasters’ First Amendment rights allow them to air candidate interviews.

“Like many other so-called ‘investigations’ before it, the FCC will announce an investigation but never carry one out, reach a conclusion, or take any meaningful action,” she said.

“This is government intimidation, not a legitimate investigation.”

The View aired an interview on Feb 2 with Democratic Texas State Representative James Talarico, who is running for his party’s nomination for the US Senate in a state no Democrat has won since 1994.

Representative Jasmine Crockett, a Texas Democrat, is also running and appeared on The View in January.

Mr Trump, in December, singled out an ABC News correspondent for asking Saudi Arabia’s crown prince about the 2018 killing of a Washington Post columnist. He suggested the FCC should move to revoke the broadcast licences of stations airing Disney-owned ABC programming.

Mr Carr faced bipartisan criticism after pressuring broadcasters to take ABC late-night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel off the air in September, warning they could face fines or loss of licences, and said “it’s time for them to step up.” REUTERS