ABC News Tells Federal Court FCC Is Running "Intimidation Campaign" Against Critical Media

ABC News argued in a July 30, 2026 federal court filing that the FCC is waging an "intimidation campaign" against outlets critical of President Trump. The filing challenges the FCC's early review of eight ABC-owned broadcast licenses — the first such out-of-cycle review in over 50 years. ABC says the agency seeks "a media industry too fearful of official reprisal to report the news freely." The FCC cites a diversity-policy probe as its rationale.