AP Photo/Evan Vucci
President Donald Trump doubled down on his late Sunday attacks on ABC News in fresh demands that ABC and NBC should both lose their broadcast licenses because of what he called “biased and untruthful” coverage of his presidency.
Ripping the networks as a “threat to democracy” in a flurry of posts on Truth Social, the president wrote:
Despite a very high popularity and, according to many, among the greatest 8 months in Presidential History, ABC & NBC FAKE NEWS, two of the worst and most biased networks in history, give me 97% BAD STORIES. IF THAT IS THE CASE, THEY ARE SIMPLY AN ARM OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY AND SHOULD, ACCORDING TO MANY, HAVE THEIR LICENSES REVOKED BY THE FCC. I would be totally in favor of that because they are so biased and untruthful, an actual threat to our Democracy!!! MAGA
Moments later, he added in a further post:
Why is it that ABC and NBC FAKE NEWS, two of the absolute worst and most biased networks anywhere in the World, aren’t paying Millions of
Dollars a year in LICENSE FEES. They should lose their Licenses for their unfair coverage of Republicans and/or Conservatives, but at a minimum, they should pay up BIG for having the privilege of using the most valuable airwaves anywhere at anytime!!! Crooked “journalism” should not be rewarded, it should be terminated!!!
This latest broadside follows Trump’s $16 million settlement with CBS earlier this summer over its 2024 60 Minutes interview with Vice President Kamala Harris, a deal swiftly followed by FCC approval of parent company Paramount’s $8 billion merger with Skydance.
(Truth Social screenshot)
The regulatory backdrop has sharpened concerns among critics that Trump is wielding federal power to shape the media landscape.
Hours before his attacks on ABC and NBC, Trump rounded on former New Jersey governor Chris Christie, a past ally turned critic, who appeared on ABC’s This Week to criticize FBI raids against the president’s ex-national security advisor John Bolton.
Trump floated reopening an investigation into the 2013 “Bridgegate” scandal that involved Christie’s aides.