President Trump has come under fire from political scientists after suggesting ABC News and NBC News could have their broadcast licenses removed, with one American political expert telling Newsweek he is taking a “totalitarian approach.”
Newsweek contacted the White House, ABC News, NBC News and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which has oversight over broadcasting licenses, for comment on Monday via email outside of regular office hours.
Why It Matters
Trump has long maintained that much of the mainstream American media ecosystem is biased against him and publishes “FAKE NEWS,” a claim backed up by many of his supporters.
However, critics argue Trump’s attacks on the media could undermine democratic norms with prominent Democrats, including former Vice President Kamala Harris, suggesting he could threaten American democracy.
What To Know
In a post on his Truth Social website published on Sunday, Trump indicated ABC News and NBC News, who he described as “two of the worst and most biased networks in history,” could have their broadcast licenses withdrawn by the FCC.
The president said, without providing evidence, that they “give me 97% BAD STORIES,” adding: “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!!!”
However a number of political scientists argued Trump’s post showed a disregard for American democratic norms.
Dafydd Townley, an expert on U.S. politics who teaches at the University of Portsmouth in the U.K., told Newsweek: “Trump’s threat to silence ABC and NBC is yet more evidence that this administration is adopting a totalitarian approach to governance as it ignores the rights to a free press as mandated in the First Amendment.
“It is further proof that this administration will not cease in its efforts to quash all dissenting opposition until all of America is subservient to this president.”
On X, Jonathan Turley, a professor at George Washington University, acknowledged bias in the media, writing: “Many of us have been highly critical of the bias of the networks in their coverage. However, revoking media licenses over such objections would cross the Rubicon into censorship. The solution is greater competition and it is working…”
Mark Shanahan, who teaches American politics at the University of Surrey in England, told Newsweek: “The media has traditionally been ‘the Fourth Estate’—a watchdog to hold government to account. But that’s not what Trump wants.
“He demands PR instead, quiescent cheerleading, unquestioningly supportive of whatever he does. That’s the kind of media we see in Russia and China, and previously in the fascist regimes of the 1930s. It is not a sign of a healthy democracy.”
What People Are Saying
Speaking to Newsweek Professor D. Roderick Kiewiet, an expert in American political theory at the California Institute of Technology, said: “Political bias…does not provide a reason for revoking their broadcasting licenses. The FCC abolished the Fairness Doctrine some 40 years ago, so as far as I can tell they can say whatever they want—subject of course, to liability laws and other forms of journalistic malpractice.”
Professor Terry M. Moe, a political scientist who teaches at Stanford University, told Newsweek: “As always, Trump’s accusations against the media are inversions of the truth. He is the real threat to democracy—the greatest internal threat the nation has faced since the civil war.
“He seeks to unilaterally impose his personal will on all sectors of American society, weaponizing the full power of the federal government to inflict maximum pain on any who resist. This is what autocrats do.”
What Happens Next
There are currently no indications that the FCC plans to remove the broadcasting license of either ABC News or NBC News. It remains to be seen whether the FCC will come under further pressure from the Trump administration to change this position. Any bid to strip either broadcaster of its license would almost certainly trigger a legal challenge on First Amendment grounds.
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