“Jimmy Kimmel Live” has decided against broadcasting an interview Thursday night with James Talarico, the Democratic Senate candidate in Texas, and will instead post it on YouTube, the latest development in a yearlong battle between ABC and the Federal Communications Commission.

During his monologue Wednesday night, Kimmel said that his show preemptively made the decision because of pressure from President Donald Trump and the FCC over “simple, traditional editorial decisions; guest bookings it would seem they don’t like.”

“Now that he’s president, his FCC has threatened me, threatened our show, threatened our network, ABC, our affiliates, our local stations,” Kimmel said. “So if you want to learn about a candidate for the Senate tomorrow, you will have to go to the ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ YouTube channel,” he added.

A spokesperson for Brendan Carr, the chair of the FCC, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. A spokesperson for ABC, which broadcasts “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” had no comment.

Carr has taken a combative approach to media outlets since being appointed by Trump last year. NPR, PBS, Disney, CBS and NBCUniversal owner Comcast have come under scrutiny as he has opened investigations into their hiring practices, reexamined rules around interviews with political candidates, parsed their interviews and ordered a review of station broadcast licenses. Some of those moves have been met with outcry from First Amendment advocates, who have accused Carr of attempting to curtail free expression.

Carr and Kimmel clashed last year. After Kimmel commented on the way Trump’s supporters were characterizing the politics of the man accused of assassinating conservative activist Charlie Kirk, Carr said on a podcast that Kimmel’s remarks were part of a “concerted effort to lie to the American people.” He added that the FCC was “going to have remedies that we can look at.”

Some TV station groups responded by boycotting Kimmel’s show, and Disney, which owns ABC, pulled him off the air as the controversy snowballed. But Kimmel returned the next week, addressing his suspension in an emotional monologue.

Disney’s troubles with the FCC didn’t end there. In April, the FCC ordered a review of all station licenses held by ABC, saying in a filing that the decision stemmed from an investigation into ABC’s diversity and inclusion policies. It has also opened an investigation into “The View,” a daytime talk show aired by ABC, over equal-time rules that apply to appearances by political candidates.

Disney has sued to block the FCC’s attempt to revoke its licenses, accusing the commission of violating the First Amendment.

Carr’s interpretation of a century-old rule around “equal time” has had a chilling effect on talk show bookings since the beginning of the year. In February, Stephen Colbert announced on his former late-night show that CBS had prevented him from interviewing Talarico, citing the same guidance from the FCC.

The interview, which Colbert’s show posted to YouTube, garnered 9.5 million views and more than 71,000 comments. By comparison, Colbert’s 2019 interview with Joe Biden, who had already launched his presidential campaign for the 2020 election, generated 681,791 views and 3,402 comments on YouTube while also airing on CBS.

ABC said in a lawsuit that it filed in a federal court against the FCC last month that Carr’s updated guidance has affected the types of guests “The View” books as well. In the suit, ABC said that “The View” has been “more circumspect in booking political candidates, and has resulted in passing on further consideration of booking several political candidates.”

The updated FCC guidance, announced in January, affects only political candidates running for office, not elected officials. For example, “The View” had Sen. Ted Cruz as a guest on Wednesday morning’s show.

Carr has argued that his interpretation of the law offers “more speech, not less; you can have more candidates on,” he said earlier this year.

“Congress passed the equal time provision for a very specific reason,” Carr said at a news conference in February. “They didn’t want the media elites in Hollywood and New York to put their thumb on the scale and pick the winners and losers in primaries and general elections.”

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This article originally appeared in The New York Times.

By Benjamin Mullin and John Koblin/Eric Lee
c. 2026 The New York Times Company