Bipartisan ex-FCC officials are calling the early ABC license review an attack on free speech

A bipartisan group of former Federal Communications Commission chairs, commissioners, and senior staff filed with the agency Tuesday urging current leadership to end an early license review targeting eight Disney $DIS-owned ABC television stations, calling the proceeding an unconstitutional attack on free speech. The signatories — who served under Republican and Democratic presidents — included former FCC Chairman Mark Fowler, who served under President Ronald Reagan; former Chairman Alfred Sikes, who served under President George H.W.

Bush; former Chairman Tom Wheeler, who served under President Barack Obama; and former Commissioner Rachelle Chong, according to Reuters. High-ranking former agency lawyers and advisers also signed. The filing contained direct quotes from the group: "This early license renewal proceeding is unprecedented in the history of the Federal Communications Commission and a grave violation of both the Communications Act and the Constitution.

Through this proceeding, the FCC seeks to censor Disney's and ABC's speech and send a chilling message to all broadcasters: carry speech we don't like at your peril." Beyond the direct quotes, the filing's authors characterized the proceeding as "the latest attack in a sustained campaign by Chairman Brendan Carr and the Trump administration of threatening legal sanctions against licensees whose speech President Trump dislikes" and dismissed it as "an assault on free speech disguised as regulatory process," concluding with a demand that the commission "terminate this proceeding." FCC Chairman Brendan Carr initiated the early review in April, more than two years before the ABC stations' licenses were set to come up for renewal beginning in October 2028, according to Reuters.

The agency said the review stemmed from a year-long investigation into whether Disney's diversity, equity and inclusion practices amounted to unlawful employment discrimination. The early review order came one day after President Donald Trump called for ABC late-night host Jimmy Kimmel to be fired. Tuesday's filing marked the first time in over half a century that the agency had compelled a broadcaster into an early license review.

The former officials contended in their filing that Carr "has prejudged the outcome of this proceeding" and warned that the commission "may assert the power to terminate the stations' licenses early." The FCC proceeding has drawn significant public attention since Disney launched an on-air campaign urging viewers to submit comments. More than 145,000 comments have been filed.

The deadline for public comment is Aug. 5. Disney submitted renewal applications for the eight stations in May under protest, describing the FCC's order as "unlawful, arbitrary, and unconstitutional" and accusing the agency of "unconstitutional retaliation and coercion."

Last week, Carr said ABC's decision not to air a Trump speech on July 16 about U.S. election security would factor into the review, according to Variety.

Anna Gomez, the FCC's only Democratic commissioner, pushed back at the same press conference. "This vague public interest standard is being used just to punish speech that this administration doesn't like and to reward speech that it does like," Gomez said. "That's inappropriate, and it's contrary to the law and to the Constitution."

Representatives for the FCC did not respond to requests for comment.