FCC Orders Disney’s ABC Stations to File License Renewals by May 28, 2026

The Federal Communications Commission ordered Disney’s eight owned-and-operated television stations to file their broadcast license renewals ahead of schedule, accelerating a process that was “not due to come up for renewal until 2028 at the earliest,” according to NBC News.

The FCC’s Tuesday order directed the stations to comply within 30 days, and multiple outlets tied the action to an ongoing investigation into Disney’s diversity, equity and inclusion practices.

ABC News

NBC News quoted the FCC’s rationale that “calling in Disney’s ABC licenses for early renewal, at this time, under the Communications Act’s public interest standard is essential within the meaning of agency regulations.”

The order also set a specific deadline: Variety reported that Disney must file renewals “by May 28, 2026,” and The Guardian said the stations were required to file for renewal by “28 May.”

The Guardian further listed the eight targeted stations as “WABC-TV New York, KABC-TV Los Angeles, WLS-TV Chicago, WPVI-TV Philadelphia, KTRK-TV Houston, KGO-TV San Francisco, WTVD-TV Raleigh-Durham and KFSN-TV Fresno.”

Disney acknowledged receipt of the order and said it would fight through “the appropriate legal channels,” with NBC News quoting Disney’s statement that “ABC and its stations have a long record of operating in full compliance with FCC rules and serving their local communities with trusted news, emergency information, and public‑interest programming.”

The FCC’s early renewal order arrived in the middle of a dispute over Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night monologue about Melania Trump, with NBC News saying the move “got fast-tracked after ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel made a joke about first lady Melania Trump.”

Los Angeles Times described the FCC’s action as “the most aggressive attempt by the White House to target President Trump’s media critics,” and said FCC Chairman Brendan Carr had “repeatedly targeted ABC programming he deems critical of Trump.”

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NBC News and Los Angeles Times both tied the dispute to Kimmel’s “expectant widow” remarks and the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner at the Washington Hilton, where a man breached security Saturday while armed with a shotgun, handgun and several knives.

Los Angeles Times identified the suspect as “Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance,” and said he “faces three criminal charges, including attempting to assassinate President Trump.”

Los Angeles Times quoted Kimmel’s explanation of the joke, including “It was a very light roast joke about the fact that he’s almost 80 and she’s younger than I am,” and “It was not, by any stretch of the definition, a call to assassination. And they know that.”

CNN reported that on the day the FCC challenged ABC’s station licenses, Kimmel told his audience “The show goes on,” and quoted him asking, “Wait a minute, did he just make a joke about his death?”

The FCC’s move drew immediate pushback from Democratic FCC commissioner Anna M. Gomez, who called the action “unprecedented, unlawful, and going nowhere” and said “This is unprecedented, unlawful, and going nowhere. It is a political stunt and it won’t stick.”

NBC News quoted Gomez directly, saying “This is unprecedented, unlawful, and going nowhere. It is a political stunt and it won’t stick. Companies should challenge it head-on. The First Amendment is on their side.”

The Guardian also quoted Gomez’s post on X as “This political stunt won’t stick. Companies should challenge it head-on. The First Amendment is on their side.”

Free Press accused Brendan Carr of using power to silence dissent, with NBC News quoting the group’s claim that Carr was “using his position of power to silence dissent at the president’s beck and call. This extraordinary and unconstitutional attack on the media is nothing more than another favor to the most fragile president in U.S. history.”

On the other side, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr argued that the agency could accelerate renewals if there were “significant concerns,” and The Guardian quoted him saying: “There’s evidence that Disney has been pretty bad.”

NBC News included a direct response from an FCC spokesperson, who said: “As the agency decision makes clear, the early renewal order is based on a long running FCC investigation into Disney’s DEI conduct, not any speech.”

While all the outlets described the FCC’s early renewal directive and the same core deadline, they differed in emphasis—particularly on whether the timing around Kimmel’s Melania Trump joke signaled retaliation.

The Guardian framed the move as “political and regulatory retribution,” saying the FCC’s announcement “comes after the White House launched a full-on attack against the ABC’s late-night host, Jimmy Kimmel.”

CBS News

Los Angeles Times similarly portrayed the action as part of a broader effort by the White House, writing that the move is “by far the most aggressive attempt by the White House to target President Trump’s media critics.”

Variety leaned into the legal and procedural implications, describing the demand as “unprecedented” and saying it “sets the stage for potentially years of legal wrangling between Disney and the FCC.”

CNN described the FCC directive as “widely seen as an act of retaliation,” while also noting that the FCC’s order “made no mention of Kimmel” and instead pointed to the DEI investigation.

Semafor added a timing nuance, saying “A person familiar with the FCC’s thinking said the timing of a review wasn’t directly linked to the Kimmel monologue,” even as it reported the review followed Trump and Melania Trump’s demand that Kimmel be fired.

The FCC’s order sets up a process that multiple outlets described as potentially lengthy, with the next steps depending on whether the FCC finds violations and whether the matter proceeds through hearings.

The Guardian reported that if the FCC determines a broadcaster is in violation, the next step would be a hearing designation, which Carr said was a “multi-month process.”

CNBC

Variety said the move “sets the stage for potentially years of legal wrangling between Disney and the FCC,” and CNN similarly described “the protracted legal process for licensing” as something that “could drag on for years.”

NBC News reported that the stations have “30 days to comply with the FCC’s order,” and that NBC News reached out to all eight stations for comment, indicating the immediate operational impact is filing renewals early.

The Guardian also described the FCC’s stated authority, quoting that “Specifically, FCC rules provide that whenever the FCC regards an application for a renewal of a license as essential to the proper conduct of an investigation,” the FCC can call licenses in for early renewal.

Disney said it was “prepared to show that through the appropriate legal channels” that it remains qualified under the Communications Act and the First Amendment, and CNN reported Gomez said she was “glad to see that Disney is going to push back, because it has the First Amendment on its side.”