Trump's Increasing Threats to Revoke Broadcast Licenses Alarm Industry

Broadcast television licensing is not ordinarily a hot topic during the election period. But Donald Trump’s threats are not ordinary, either. 

In the past two years, Trump has called for every major American TV news network to be punished, according to a CNN review of his speeches and social media posts.

He has indefinitely but constantly invoked the government’s licensing of broadcast TV airwaves and has said on at least 15 occasions that certain licenses should be canceled. His anti broadcasting broadsides against CBS, ABC, NBC and even Fox are almost always in reaction to interview questions he dislikes or programming he detests. 

Trump's recent threats against CBS have escalated, particularly targeting "60 Minutes" for its edited interview with Vice President Kamala Harris. The respected program stated on Sunday that his allegations are unfounded, yet he persisted in discussing the issue during his campaign appearances, and his legal team sent a warning letter to CBS the following day.

“It’s so bad they should lose their license, and they should take ’60 Minutes’ off the air,” Trump told right-wing podcaster Dan Bongino last week.

National networks such as CBS do not require licenses, while local stations do. The Federal Communications Commission, the government agency responsible for licensing, issues eight-year terms and has not denied a license renewal in decades. According to public interest lawyer Andrew Jay Schwartzman, the renewal process is so lengthy that no license could be denied before the end of a potential second Trump term.

Nonetheless, a potential chilling effect is evident. Trump's increasingly persistent threats have led some TV industry executives to speculate that they might face retaliation if he regains power.

In response to CNN's request for comment, the National Association of Broadcasters, which represents American TV and radio operators, stated that Trump's rhetoric undermines First Amendment freedoms. However, NAB CEO Curtis LeGeyt did not specifically mention the former president.

“From our country’s beginning, the right of the press to challenge the government, root out corruption and speak freely without fear of recrimination has been central to our democracy,” LeGeyt said in a statement. “Times may have changed, but that principle – enshrined in the First Amendment – has not. The threat from any politician to revoke a broadcast license simply because they disagree with the station’s content undermines this basic freedom.”

Many of Trump's threats condense national networks and local stations. CBS is his current target, but the previous he constantly accused ABC of wrongdoing after he was fact checked during a presidential debate with Harris, floating “they ought to take away their license” as punishment. Earlier in the year, he said of NBC and CNN, “they should have their licenses or whatever they have taken away”.

CNN, which is distributed via cable, satellite and streaming services, is not licensed by the FCC like broadcast stations.

In November 2023, Trump mistakenly conflated broadcast and cable while criticizing the cable news network MSNBC. He posted on Truth Social that MSNBC “uses FREE government-approved airwaves… for purposes of ELECTION INTERFERENCE.” However, MSNBC does not use those airwaves; only the local NBC stations do.

Following ABC's hosting of a presidential debate in September, Trump alleged, “people are saying that Comrade Kamala Harris had the questions from Fake News ABC.” This would represent a serious ethical violation, yet there was no evidence to support his claim. Nevertheless, since Harris was widely perceived as having won the debate, Trump expressed his frustration on Truth Social. He pointed out Disney Entertainment co-chairman Dana Walden's close ties to Harris, stating, “if she did give the questions to Kamala, ABC’s license should be TERMINATED.”