FCC readies rulings against ABC’s ‘The View,’ Disney licenses

The Federal Communications Commission is expected to rule that ABC’s daytime talk show “The View” is not a bona fide news program, a decision that would subject the Disney-owned broadcast to federal equal-time requirements for political candidates, according to a report by Bloomberg.

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According to Bloomberg’s sources, the commission, under Chairman Brendan Carr, could hand down the ruling before Labor Day. The finding would classify “The View” as entertainment programming, meaning a legally qualified opposing candidate could request — and would be entitled to — comparable airtime if the show hosts a candidate for office.

The FCC is also moving to send its separate investigation of Disney’s broadcast television licenses to an administrative hearing, a step that could put the company’s eight ABC-owned stations at risk, including outlets in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Philadelphia, Houston, San Francisco, Raleigh-Durham, N.C., and Fresno, Calif., Bloomberg’s sources said.

The dispute traces back to Feb. 2, when “The View” interviewed James Talarico, the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Texas. The interview prompted Mr. Carr’s agency to open an inquiry into whether the show still qualifies for the “bona fide news” exemption the FCC granted it in 2002.

ABC has pushed back forcefully. In reply comments filed with the commission, the network argued that stripping the exemption would improperly insert the government into its editorial decisions. “The First Amendment does not permit the government to sit in an editor’s chair,” the network wrote in its filing.

ABC, joined by its Houston affiliate KTRK-TV, had asked the FCC in May to reaffirm the 2002 ruling, and has noted that the commission itself compelled the network to file the request. Disney has also launched a public campaign urging viewers to contact the FCC in support of “The View” and its local stations, whose license renewals were moved up years ahead of schedule.

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Separately, according to a Semafor analysis, “The View” has grown more cautious in booking political candidates and has not featured a contender in a competitive midterm race since Mr. Carr announced the inquiry in February.

If the commission strips the exemption, its ruling on “The View” could be appealed to the full commission and then to federal court. The license proceeding, meanwhile, could be decided by Mr. Carr or the full commission before any judicial appeal. Disney is expected to challenge any adverse rulings.