Brendan Carr Defends FCC After Colbert Outrage, But Confirms FCC Is Investigating ‘The View’

Earlier this week, Stephen Colbert claimed CBS lawyers barred The Late Show from airing an interview with U.S. Senate hopeful James Talarico Select Censorship Brendan Carr Defends FCC After Colbert Outrage, But Confirms FCC Is Investigating ‘The View’ Earlier this week, Stephen Colbert claimed CBS lawyers barred The Late Show from airing an interview with U.S. Senate hopeful James Talarico By Charisma Madarang Charisma Madarang Contact Charisma Madarang on X Contact Charisma Madarang by Email North West Signs to Gamma — The Same Company Ye Partnered With for ‘Bully’ ‘Pulp Fiction’ Actor Peter Greene’s Cause of Death Revealed After Being Found Dead in Apartment Evan Dando’s Wife Speaks Out After He Allegedly Sent Lemonheads Fan Unwanted Explicit Videos View all posts by Charisma Madarang February 19, 2026 FCC Chairman Brendan Carr prepares to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee on Jan. 14, 2026 in Washington, DC. Win McNamee/Getty Images After Stephen Colbert claimed that CBS lawyers blocked The Late Show from airing an interview with James Talarico — a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in Texas — for fear the network would meet the displeasure of the Federal Communications Commission, FCC chair Brendan Carr downplayed the controversy. During the agency’s press conference on Wednesday, Carr insisted there was “zero censorship with the equal time provision.” “You had a Democrat candidate who understood the way that 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,” Carr told reporters. On Monday night’s episode of The Late Show, Colbert alleged that the FCC has begun cracking down on liberal-leaning broadcasters under the guise of enforcing the “equal time” rule. The so-called equal time rule requires broadcast and radio stations to offer “equal opportunities” to political candidates running against each other. However, there have historically been exceptions to the rule, including talk shows like The Late Show, as well as documentaries, on-the-spot interviews, and scheduled newscasts. Under Carr’s leadership, the FCC has moved to strip those protections from liberal-leaning broadcast outlets, while exempting other broadcasts like right-wing talk radio. While the interview with Talarico did not make it on air, Colbert announced that their conversation would instead be distributed on the show’s YouTube channel. In a statement to CNN, CBS claimed that they had not prohibited Colbert from airing the interview. “The show was provided legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal-time rule for two other candidates, including Rep. Jasmine Crockett,” the broadcaster said, adding that The Late Show decided to post the interview on social media “rather than potentially providing the equal-time options.” Trending Stories ‘Pulp Fiction’ Actor Peter Greene's Cause of Death Revealed After Being Found Dead in Apartment