ABC has escalated its defence of its daytime talk show "The View" against a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) investigation, filing new comments on Monday that frame the probe as an unconstitutional intrusion on free speech. The Disney-owned broadcaster argues that the regulator is attempting to decide which programmes count as legitimate news, warning that this would place the government "in an editor's chair" in violation of the First Amendment. The dispute matters because it raises broader questions about whether a federal agency can override a broadcaster's editorial choices about whom to interview.

The comments build on a petition ABC first submitted to the FCC in May, seeking to have "The View" formally declared a "bona fide" news programme — a status the network says the agency already granted in 2002. That petition has since attracted more than 77,000 comments from members of the public concerned about government interference. ABC further contends that the FCC's scrutiny is politically motivated, targeting daytime and late-night shows seen as hostile to President Donald Trump while ignoring talk radio, where candidates regularly appear without their opponents. The probe is tied to the FCC's enforcement of "equal time" rules for political candidates.