""Importantly, the FCC has not been presented with any evidence that the interview portion of any late night or daytime television talk show program on air presently would qualify for the bona fide news exemption," the FCC said Wednesday (via ). "Moreover, a program that is motivated by partisan purposes, for example, would not be entitled to an exemption under longstanding FCC precedent.""
"In a statement, Anna Gomez, the only Democrat serving on the FCC, called the new guidance an "escalation in this FCC's ongoing campaign to censor and control speech." She continued, "Broadcasters should not feel pressured to water down, sanitize, or avoid critical coverage out of fear of regulatory retaliation. Broadcast stations have a constitutional right to carry newsworthy content, even when that content is critical of those in power.""
Brendan Carr announced new FCC guidance reinterpreting equal-time rules to potentially remove talk-show interview protections under the bona fide news exemption. Talk shows have been treated as exempt since a 1996 decision allowing Jay Leno to interview politicians. The FCC stated it has seen no evidence that current late-night or daytime talk-show interview segments qualify for that exemption and said programs motivated by partisan purposes would not be exempt. Historically, equal-time rules stopped stations from offering free time to some candidates while denying others, with rivals able to request equal time. A Democratic commissioner warned the guidance could amount to censorship and pressure broadcasters to avoid critical coverage.
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