An open letter to the U.S. Congress

Reject Political Interference with ABC's Broadcast License

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The FCC must reject the National Religious Broadcasters complaint against ABC and refuse to call in Disney/ABC station licenses for early renewal over Jimmy Kimmel's joke about Melania Trump. Using federal regulatory power to punish a comedian for political satire is a dangerous abuse of executive authority. The FCC's own rules are clear: the commission can only act on obscenity, indecency, or profanity, not political commentary or humor. FCC Commissioner Anna M. Gomez got it right when she warned against using recent events as "a pretext for silencing speech." Kimmel's joke, whatever you think of it, was protected First Amendment expression. The president calling for a broadcaster to fire a comedian, then having his administration threaten that broadcaster's licenses, is exactly the kind of government retaliation the First Amendment was designed to prevent. This isn't about defending one joke or one comedian. It's about whether federal agencies will become weapons to settle personal scores. If the FCC caves to White House pressure now, every broadcaster will know that criticizing those in power puts their licenses at risk. That chilling effect would fundamentally undermine press freedom. Stand with the First Amendment. Oppose any FCC action against ABC over protected political speech.

▶ Created on April 30 by Lia

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