In the midst of CBS and Stephen Colbert’s opposing stances on a recently featured guest, FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has announced that ABC’s The View will be under the microscope for inviting that same guest, Democratic U.S. Senate candidate James Talarico, on the show. According to Deadline, Talarico appeared on the talk news series before the unaired appearance on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
According to Deadline, this is the second incident involving alleged violations of the Fair Time Rule, which stipulates that broadcasters who feature a political candidate must provide the same airtime for the opposite party’s candidate upon request. Carr told reporters, “We’re taking a look at it,” referring to Talarico’s interview with the ladies of the long-time daytime talk series.
Deadline reports talk shows have historically been exempt from this rule, similar to news programming. However, last month, Carr warned Colbert, The View and its ABC partner, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, that this protection could change. The FCC emphasized that certain behaviors could determine whether a show would face review, including a host donating to a candidate’s campaign, and if the appearance is “motivated by partisan purposes.”
All of this fervor began with a dispute over at The Late Show, which has been the target of the Trump administration’s ire since 2025. During Monday’s episode, the former Daily Show correspondent defied alleged CBS guidance and informed his studio audience that the network axed airing an interview with Talarico. As a show of resistance, the interview was subsequently posted to the show’s YouTube channel the next day.
CBS responded, stating that they never told Colbert that he could not air the interview, but rather advised him to withhold it, fearing retaliation from the FCC’s Fair Time Rule.
According to Deadline, FCC Chairman Carr viewed the incident as nothing more than a ploy.
“Look, anybody that’s not suffering from a terminal case of Trump derangement syndrome could see right away yesterday the exact story arc and how it was going to play out,” Carr said via Deadline. “You had a Democrat candidate who understood the way the news media works, and he took advantage of all of your sort of prior conceptions to run a hoax, apparently, for the purpose of raising money and getting clicks, and the news media played right into it.”
Following the controversy, Talarico shared the YouTube interview on his X account, stating, “This is the interview Donald Trump didn’t want you to see. His FCC refused to air my interview with Stephen Colbert. Trump is worried we’re about to flip Texas.” In addition to the message, Deadline reports Talarico’s campaign gained $2.5 million since the interview became public.
According to Deadline, the lone Democrat on the FCC, Anna Gomez, saw the incident with The Late Show as another overstep of the commission and its contempt for entities that criticize the Trump administration.
“I do think that the threats are the point, the harassment is the point, because the commission is not going to survive appeal if it actually takes action against these broadcasters, because what it is doing is a violation of the First Amendment,” she said via Deadline.
The Late Show with Stephen Colbert was canceled last year, following Skydance’s purchase of Paramount. CBS confirmed the show was ending due to financial strains, and not pressure from President Trump. The show will conclude in May.
View the full The View interview below.