There are some media fights that cool off for a minute and then come roaring right back the second a new pressure point appears. ABC and Disney are in that position again now, and this time the stakes look a lot higher than another ugly cable-news cycle. What started as a furious backlash over Jimmy Kimmel’s remarks about First Lady Melania Trump has turned into something far more serious, with new reporting saying the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is preparing to move up reviews of Disney’s ABC station licenses. That has immediately raised the temperature around the company all over again, because this no longer looks like just another partisan media spat — it looks like a regulatory escalation.
The FCC is set to initiate early license reviews for eight Disney-owned ABC television stations, which would mark a major escalation in the Trump administration’s ongoing conflict with large media companies. In addition, this kind of step would be highly unusual, saying the FCC has not taken comparable action in more than 40 years. It was noted earlier that the FCC was preparing to review Disney’s broadcast licenses more broadly, particularly those tied to ABC, though no final formal decision had yet been announced at that stage.
What Caused This Latest Feud Between ABC and the FCC?
The latest blowup follows Kimmel’s on-air joke about Melania Trump. In the line that set all of this off, Kimmel said, “Mrs. Trump, you have a glow like an expectant widow.” Melania responded by urging ABC to “take a stand,” calling Kimmel a “coward,” and accusing him of spreading “hateful and violent rhetoric.”
Kimmel later said the joke had been misconstrued and argued that he was referring to the age difference between Donald Trump and Melania Trump rather than making a broader threat. Melania Trump‘s statement follows:
“Kimmel’s hateful and violent rhetoric is intended to divide our country. His monologue about my family isn’t comedy — his words are corrosive and deepens the political sickness within America. People like Kimmel shouldn’t have the opportunity to enter our homes each evening to spread hate. A coward, Kimmel hides behind ABC because he knows the network will keep running cover to protect him. Enough is enough. It is time for ABC to take a stand. How many times will ABC’s leadership enable Kimmel’s atrocious behavior at the expense of our community.”
Donald Trump weighed in via Truth Social later that day, adding: “I appreciate that so many people are incensed by Kimmel’s despicable call to violence, and normally would not be responsive to anything that he said, but this is something far beyond the pale. Jimmy Kimmel should be immediately fired by Disney and ABC.”
Later in the day, Disney responded, following the FFC‘s order to file license renewals for all of their licensed TV stations within 30 days “We have received the Federal Communications Commission’s order initiating an accelerated review of the licenses held by ABC’s owned television stations.” The station renewals were originally set to occur in 2028 and 2031. Now Disney has to have all the paperwork in by May 28 at the latest.
via Collider