Disney sues FCC over broadcast-license threat

JUST IN: Disney sues the FCC over broadcast-license threats, accusing the Trump administration of attacking ABC's journalism and the viewpoints aired on its network.

Disney is suing the FCC. The Mouse versus the regulator, in open court.

The lawsuit, filed today, accuses the Trump administration of using broadcast license threats as a weapon against ABC's journalism, punishing the network for the viewpoints it puts on air. Disney owns ABC, and a broadcast license is the oxygen supply for its owned stations, so when the regulator starts making noises about pulling them, that stops being oversight and starts looking like leverage.

And that's exactly Disney's argument, that the government is trying to shape what a newsroom says by holding its licenses hostage. That's a First Amendment fight, and companies this size don't pick those casually. Disney's lawyers clearly decided that staying quiet was more expensive than suing the people who regulate them.

When the entertainment giant with the deepest pockets in Hollywood decides its safest move is to sue its own regulator, that tells you how bad the room has gotten.

This is Liu Yang, reporting for HIT.

Source Read the original reporting at marketwatch.com