Late night TV host Stephen Colbert said his interview with Democratic Texas state Rep. James Talarico, who is running for U.S. Senate, was scrapped by CBS due to the Trump administration’s call for equal time for Republican politicians on network TV. While Colbert accused the network of censorship, CBS claimed it was following the FCC’s “equal time” regulations.
[NOTE: Colbert told his audience that Talarico “was supposed to be here, but we were told in no uncertain terms by our network’s lawyers, who called us directly, that we could not have him on the broadcast.” CBS, which shared the interview on YouTube instead, said that it “was provided legal guidance that the broadcast could trigger the FCC equal-time rule for two other candidates” and made its decision based on that guidance.]
U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) responded on social media: “Equal Time Rule requires networks provide political candidates access to equal air time. Congress specifically carved out an exemption for talk shows because candidate interviews are newsworthy and important in informing people about their choices. Carr can’t repeal this by fiat.”
Equal Time Rule requires networks provide political candidates access to equal air time. Congress specifically carved out an exemption for talk shows because candidate interviews are newsworthy and important in informing people about their choices. Carr can’t repeal this by fiat.
— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) February 18, 2026
Trump’s FCC Chair Brendan Carr, who in September played the heavy — “we can do this the easy way or the hard way,” he said — when ABC suspended Jimmy Kimmel Live!, replied to Schatz: “No, Congress carved out an exception for ‘bona fide news’ programs, not ‘for talk shows.’ And the D.C. Circuit recognized long ago that Congress *did* assign the FCC the task of applying that standard to specific programs. The whole idea is that Congress did not want media gatekeepers to pick the winners and losers in elections. That choice resides rightly with the people.”
Carr, appointed by Trump in his first term, made headlines with a similar claim in November 2024, when he accused Saturday Night Live of breaking the equal time rule by featuring Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris just before the election. Carr called the appearance “a clear and blatant effort to evade the FCC’s Equal Time rule.”
(Months before Harris’s appearance, SNL showrunner Lorne Michaels appeared to recognize an obligation to adhere to the rule, telling The Hollywood Reporter that “you can’t bring the actual people who are running on because of election laws and the equal time provisions. You can’t have the main candidates without having all the candidates.”)
This is a clear and blatant effort to evade the FCC’s Equal Time rule.
The purpose of the rule is to avoid exactly this type of biased and partisan conduct – a licensed broadcaster using the public airwaves to exert its influence for one candidate on the eve of an election.… https://t.co/LliZF0po9t
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) November 3, 2024
Implying Carr’s tactics with Colbert and CBS are aimed at political targets, Schatz probed the FCC chair: “What is your process for deciding to get involved? Does the FCC vote on this new approach or is this the discretion of the Chair? Do you do this by phone or by letter? Have you provided new guidance to broadcasters? Has your GC advised you? Was this a one-off?”
Carr replied with a link, writing: “Public Notice / Guidance Doc available here: FCC’s Media Bureau Provides Guidance on Political Equal Opportunities Requirement for Broadcast Television Stations.”
Note: In the Democratic primary, Talarico is running against U.S. Congresswoman Jasmine Crockett (D-TX), who has appeared on Colbert’s show. Republican frontrunners — incumbent Senator John Cornyn, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, and Rep. Wesley Hunt — have not appeared on the show.