Disney wants the federal government to officially declare that The View is news.
The FCC’s Media Bureau released Public Notice DA 26-517 on May 22, opening a public comment period on a petition filed by Disney-owned KTRK-TV Houston and parent company ABC asking the Commission to classify The View as a “bona fide news interview program.”
That classification matters because it would keep the show exempt from the equal-opportunities requirements of Section 315 of the Communications Act, the rule that prevents broadcast stations from giving political candidates unequal access to the public airwaves.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr announced the proceeding on X and invited the public to participate.
Disney Begs FCC to Label Far-Left Propaganda Show ‘The View’ as “Bona Fide News” So They Can Handpick Democrat Candidates and Silence Republicans – FCC Chairman Brendan Carr Asks the American People to Weigh In
READ: https://t.co/ggrPSSoNQP pic.twitter.com/tB2fnYmvs0
— The Gateway Pundit (@gatewaypundit) May 23, 2026
The petition was filed on May 7 under MB Docket No. 26-124 and leans on a 2002 FCC staff letter as precedent for The View’s classification as bona fide news.
The FCC is asking pointed questions about the request. The public notice focuses on whether The View’s format and participant selections are driven by newsworthiness or by partisan candidate advantage.
The FCC framed the formal question this way:
The Media Bureau says the proceeding centers on Disney-owned KTRK-TV Houston and ABC’s request for a declaratory ruling that The View qualifies as a bona fide news interview program.
That status matters because Section 315 generally requires broadcast licensees that give one legally qualified candidate airtime to give equal opportunities to opposing candidates.
The notice asks whether The View’s guests and segments are selected for newsworthiness, or whether the format creates partisan candidate advantage.
It also asks whether the statute and the Commission’s rules survive constitutional scrutiny.
The docket gives the public a formal deadline: comments are due June 22, 2026, with reply comments due July 6, 2026.
Interested parties can address Disney’s evidence, the show’s actual format, and any contrary facts before the Bureau decides how to proceed.
ADVERTISEMENTIn plain English, Disney is asking for a regulatory classification, and the FCC is asking whether the daytime political talk show actually deserves it.
That is the central question, and anyone who has watched five minutes of The View already has an opinion on it.
The show has been a reliable platform for Democratic talking points for years.
Hosts have compared Republican politicians to dictators, pushed Russia collusion narratives, and openly campaigned against conservative candidates on air. Calling that “bona fide news” requires a generous definition of the term.
Disney apparently wants to keep the benefits of a news classification without the editorial standards that normally come with it.
Breitbart added the public-facing stakes behind Disney’s request:
Disney’s filing seeks to preserve The View’s equal-time exemption even though the program regularly features political figures, candidate discussion, campaign-season arguments, and partisan commentary.
The company’s position is that the daytime show should be treated as a bona fide news interview program, a category that protects certain broadcast news and interview formats from equal-opportunities obligations.
ADVERTISEMENTChairman Carr pointed viewers to the FCC filing system and told both supporters and critics of Disney’s argument that they could submit comments in the docket.
The issue is especially sensitive because The View airs through ABC broadcast affiliates, where candidate-access rules carry real compliance consequences.
If the FCC agrees with Disney, the show keeps operating under the same broad news-interview shelter during election cycles.
That is the practical pressure point.
ADVERTISEMENTDisney is asking for a regulatory shield, and the public now gets a chance to tell the FCC whether The View deserves one.
For conservatives who have watched the show operate like a Democratic messaging panel for years, the proceeding puts a familiar complaint into a formal government record.
Without the exemption, if The View featured one political candidate, the station could be obligated to offer comparable airtime to opposing candidates. That is exactly the kind of accountability Disney is trying to avoid.
Chairman Carr is making the process transparent. He posted the docket number, 26-124, and directed the public to the FCC’s electronic comment filing system so anyone can weigh in, whether they agree with Disney or not.
Comments are due June 22, 2026. Reply comments are due July 6.
Conservative outlets have picked up the story quickly.
The FCC Is Asking the Public to Weigh in on Whether ‘The View’ Is ‘Bona Fide News’ After Disney Files Petition
READ: https://t.co/vPVKJoef3a pic.twitter.com/xJKEiPjPwV
— The Gateway Pundit (@gatewaypundit) May 25, 2026
The FCC has issued no final ruling against Disney and has stripped no exemption from The View.
This is a public comment proceeding, and the fact that the Commission is asking these questions tells you something about the current regulatory environment.
Disney built The View into one of the most politically charged programs on daytime television. Now they are asking the government to certify it as straight news so they can dodge the equal-time rules that exist for exactly this kind of situation.
The public has until June 22 to tell the FCC what they think about that.
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