How Trump’s FCC Is Policing Speech on TV Networks: QuickTake

President Donald Trump has long complained about what he sees as unfair treatment from the major television networks, but now he’s employing a new enforcer in the fight: The Federal Communications Commission.

The FCC has broad powers over broadcast station licenses and media mergers, and under Trump it has begun to police speech through a combination of updated guidance, legal leverage and bluster.

James Talarico and Stephen Colbert on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.

Photographer: Scott Kowalchyk/CBS/Getty Images

That new approach caused a high-profile confrontation between Stephen Colbert, the host of The Late Show on CBS, and the network’s new management, resulting in the network running an interview with US Senate candidate James ...