Disney and its subsidiary ABC have filed a federal lawsuit against the United States Federal Communications Commission (FCC), accusing the government's media regulator of waging a retaliatory campaign of censorship against the network in violation of the First Amendment right to free speech. The suit, filed Tuesday, names the FCC and its chairman, Brendan Carr, as defendants, and asks a federal court to immediately halt proceedings that would force eight Disney-owned local television stations to renew their broadcast licences years ahead of schedule.

The lawsuit describes the early licence renewal order — issued by the FCC in April — as "unprecedented," noting that the commission had not called for such early renewal in over 50 years, and had never before targeted all the local stations affiliated with a single broadcast network simultaneously. The timing is central to Disney and ABC's case: the FCC issued its order just one day after ABC's late-night host Jimmy Kimmel made a joke about First Lady Melania Trump. The lawsuit cites President Donald Trump's own social media posts as evidence of political motivation, including one in which he complained that ABC's coverage of him was "almost 100% negative" and suggested the network's broadcast licences should be "terminated." The FCC officially justified the early renewal demand by citing an ongoing investigation into Disney's diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices, a probe that has been under way for more than a year. "Again and again, the Administration has attacked ABC's speech," the lawsuit states. "Over time, those attacks have escalated into express demands that ABC be stripped of its broadcast licences because of its speech."

FCC Chairman Carr, whom Trump once described as a "warrior for free speech," has defended the agency's actions by arguing that broadcasters receive subsidised access to public airwaves and are therefore legally obligated to operate in the public interest. The FCC reiterated this position in a statement, saying it would "continue to follow the facts and law wherever they lead." However, Anna Gomez, the sole Democrat on the three-member commission and the only commissioner not appointed by Trump, has sharply rejected that framing. "No one believes that this is about Disney's diversity, equity and inclusion policies," she said, adding that the FCC is acting outside its legal remit by attempting to adjudicate employment discrimination — a role that belongs to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, not the FCC. Gomez praised Disney for "showing courage" and urged other broadcasters not to capitulate to government pressure.

The lawsuit also comes after a prior attempt by ABC to defuse tensions with the administration. The network had previously settled a defamation suit brought by Trump against ABC News anchor George Stephanopoulos, agreeing to pay 15 million dollars to Trump's presidential foundation. A separate FCC investigation into ABC's daytime talk show "The View," whose hosts are frequent Trump critics, also remains ongoing. The FCC has opened inquiries into several other networks, including CBS and NBC, but notably not Fox News. Gomez drew a pointed conclusion from the pattern: "You cannot buy peace from this administration. You only buy time."

The case carries implications far beyond a single broadcaster. "If the Administration gets its way," the lawsuit warns, "the message to every media company in the country will be unmistakable: tell only the stories the Administration deems favorable, or face the coercive machinery of the federal government." Disney and ABC have requested both a temporary restraining order and a speedy hearing, framing the early licence renewal process as an "existential threat" to the network's operations.