FCC commissioner says Trump call to revoke ABC, NBC licences is unconstitutional

The sole Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission on Friday criticised President Donald Trump's call for Disney-owned ABC and Comcast unit NBC to lose their broadcast licences because they refused to air his speech.

During a nearly half-hour prime-time speech on Thursday, the Republican president revived many of his longstanding claims that US elections are unreliable. In the remarks, Trump said networks that did not air his speech should have their station licences revoked.

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, who serves on the commission along with two Republicans, on Friday described Trump's call as "ridiculous" because the broadcasters made "the same editorial decisions they've made under presidents of both parties."

"Those editorial decisions are protected by the First Amendment, and the FCC has no authority to punish a station for refusing to air a blatantly political speech," she said in a statement. "This is a naked attempt to bully broadcasters, and the FCC should have no part in it."

Revoking a broadcaster's licence requires a multi-step process and a decision by an administrative law judge that could be appealed to the full FCC and the courts.

Networks have broad First Amendment rights to decide what they broadcast, experts say. But historically, they have carried most presidential speeches on the grounds that they provide information of public importance.

Broadcast networks did refuse to air remarks by Democratic presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden, officials noted.

"In a rare move NBC and ABC fake news have both said they would not cover this speech," Trump said on Thursday, adding, "Fraud like this should mean a revocation of their licences."

Trump has repeatedly urged the FCC to revoke the licences of NBC and ABC.