Donald Trump accused ABC and NBC’s news divisions of producing ‘97% BAD STORIES’ about his presidency.
The president called the mainstream outlets ‘an actual threat to our Democracy,’ adding to previous suggestions they either lose their licenses or be shut down.
‘Despite a very high popularity and, according to many, among the greatest 8 months in Presidential History, ABC & NBC FAKE NEWS, two of the worst and most biased networks in history, give me 97% BAD STORIES,’ he wrote in one post.
‘IF THAT IS THE CASE, THEY ARE SIMPLY AN ARM OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY AND SHOULD, ACCORDING TO MANY, HAVE THEIR LICENSES REVOKED BY THE FCC. I would be totally in favor of that because they are so biased and untruthful, an actual threat to our Democracy!!! MAGA’
The president has turned up the heat in his war against mainstream media, having called for all three major networks – ABC, CBS and NBC – to either lose their licenses or be shut down in the past year, in addition to successfully suing both CBS’ 60 Minutes and ABC News.
Trump was clearly tuned into the Sunday news shows, having called for Chris Christie to be investigated for ‘criminal acts’ following his appearance on ABC News’ This Week on Truth Social before he went off on both Disney-owned ABC and Comcast-owned NBC.
He also asked on Sunday: ‘Why is it that ABC and NBC FAKE NEWS, two of the absolute worst and most biased networks anywhere in the World, aren’t paying Millions of Dollars a year in LICENSE FEES.’
He then accused them of not just being biased against himself but the Republican Party as a whole.
‘They should lose their Licenses for their unfair coverage of Republicans and/or Conservatives , but at a minimum, they should pay up BIG for having the privilege of using the most valuable airwaves anywhere at anytime!!! Crooked ‘journalism’ should not be rewarded, it should be terminated!!!’
It’s the second time the president has threatened these two networks in recent months.
The tirade comes after Trump signed an executive order slashing funding for PBS and NPR.
Trump moved against the publicly funded networks over an alleged bias against conservatives, saying that it was ‘wasting billions’ on ‘atrocious’ broadcasting on Thursday night.
But the president has not been afraid to hold the networks accountable during his second term for what he sees as unfair coverage.
In mid-July Trump reached a settlement with CBS and Paramount triggered by a 60 Minutes interview with Vice President Kamala Harris.
Trump said that Paramount/CBS/60 Minutes paid $16 million in the settlement and anticipated an additional $20 million from the new owners of CBS in advertising, PSAs or similar programming.
Trump famously protested the 60 Minutes interview of Harris with host Bill Whitaker after it was revealed that one of the vice president’s lengthy spiraling answers on Israel was edited for the public broadcast.
In protest, he filed a $20 billion lawsuit to challenge CBS and 60 Minutes, arguing that the show’s producers purposefully edited the interview to make Harris look better and sway the presidential election.
CBS argued that their edits were part of the normal editorial process.
After Trump won the election and became president the Federal Communications Commission ordered for the original video and transcripts to be made public.
Paramount, CBS, and 60 Minutes settled the president’s lawsuit out of court, rather than go to trial.
The settlement concludes as the company Skydance is preparing to purchase Paramount and CBS, which requires approval from the Federal Communications Commission.
News of the settlement is expected to grease the wheels for FCC approval of the proposed merger.
That victory followed a similar win last December, when ABC News agreed to pay $15 million to Donald Trump to settle a lawsuit over assertions made by top anchor George Stephanopoulos that he was found civilly liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll.
Stephanopoulos had questioned Nancy Mace, a South Carolina Republican Congresswoman, as to why she was supporting a presidential nominee ‘who’s been found liable for rape.’
Trump had sued Stephanopoulos and the network for defamation soon after the segment aired.
His lawyers accused Stephanopoulos of making the statements with ‘malice’ and a disregard for the truth.
A New York jury in May 2023 ordered Trump to pay $5 million in damages for sexually abusing Carroll in the 1990s, though he was not found liable for rape.
He was then ordered to pay another $83.3 million for defamation after he publicly denied sexually abusing Carroll in a department store dressing room in 1996.
The settlement stipulates that the network will pay $15 million as a charitable contribution towards Trump’s presidential library.
ABC also posted a note on its website expressing regret over the claim in a March 10 segment on ‘This Week’ made by Stephanopoulos.
They also paid his legal fees as part of the settlement, which have totaled $1 million.
Trump hasn’t kept his attempts to hold the media accountable to the courtroom, however, as he has also asked FCC Chairman Brendan Carr to investigate NBC’s parent company Comcast’s DEI practices.
FCC Chairman Brendan Carr sent a letter to CEO Brian Roberts revealing the agency’s investigation in February, stating its Enforcement Bureau had been directed to investigate at the behest of the Trump administration.
‘I expect that this investigation into Comcast and its NBCUniversal operations will aid the commission’s broader efforts to root out invidious forms of DEI discrimination across all of the sectors the FCC regulates,’ Carr wrote in the correspondence.
The recently appointed chairman noted how Comcast’s website promotes DEI initiatives when it comes to hiring, training and programming.
Trump signed a series of executive orders at the start of his second term that have caused federal agencies to dial down DEI programs, laying off thousands in the process.