How FCC’s TV License Power Loomed Over Kimmel Affair: QuickTake

President Donald Trump’s administration has repeatedly threatened to use its power over broadcast TV licenses to police disfavored speech. Most recently, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr invoked the threat after late night show host Jimmy Kimmel accused Trump supporters of trying to use the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk to “score political points.”

Here’s how broadcast licensing works in the US and why it’s so rare for the government to revoke stations’ access.

Jimmy Kimmel backstage during the 95th Annual Academy Awards, March 2023.

Photographer: Al Seib/A.M.P.A.S./Getty Images

What has the Trump administration threatened?

In a Sept. 17 appearance on a conservative podcast, Carr insinuated that local stations could risk having ...