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Republicans virtually shut out of Dem-dominated talk shows as FCC aims to reform network bias
By Joseph Wulfsohn
Published January 29, 2026
The liberal talk shows on the three broadcast networks will have to curb their behaviors in the wake of a new crackdown by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
The FCC announced last week it is providing guidance to ABC, CBS and NBC to adhere to the "statutory equal opportunities requirement," citing the Communications Act of 1934, "including their airing of late night and daytime talk shows."
"Under section 315, if a broadcast station permits any legally qualified candidate for public office to use its facilities, it shall provide an equal opportunity to all other legally qualified candidates for that office," the FCC wrote in a press release.
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The FCC said it will enforce daytime and late-night talk shows to give Republican candidates equal time to Democrats. (REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo)
For the past several years, late-night talk shows like "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers," as well as daytime programs like "The View," have rolled out the red carpet for Team Blue. In 2025, of the nearly 60 active politicians that have made appearances across those four shows, all but one were Democrats, according to data from the Media Research Center.
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Among the late night offerings, neither Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert nor Seth Meyers had any Republicans on their shows in 2025. As far as the number of Democratic guests, Colbert trounced his rivals with a whopping 25 active Democratic figures. Kimmel had 10 while Meyers had three during the calendar year.
"The View," a show which purportedly boasts having different points of view on air, had 20 active Democratic politicians throughout 2025. Only one Republican politician, now-retired outspoken Trump critic Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, appeared on the show last year.
Democrats have dominated guest spots on shows like "Jimmy Kimmel Live!," "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and "The View." (Randy Holmes/Disney via Getty Images; Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images; Scott Kowalchyk ©2026 CBS Broadcasting Inc.)
Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Texas, tallied the most interviews among any active Democrat in 2025, making five broadcast appearances (twice on "The View," twice on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and once on "The Late Show.") Tied in second place with three appearances a piece were Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass, who appeared with Colbert twice and once on "The View," Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., who appeared with Colbert and Kimmel and went on "The View," as well as former Vice President Kamala Harris, who also went on the three programs to tease a potential 2028 run while on her book tour.
Also making appearances are potential 2028 Democratic contenders like Govs. Gavin Newsom, JB Pritzker, Gretchen Whitmer, Andy Bashear, and Wes Moore, Sen. Mark Kelly, former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttiegieg.
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The nearly 60 active Democrats don't even count the TV appearances by former Presidents Joe Biden and Bill Clinton, former first lady Michelle Obama and the dozens of liberal journalists and pundits.
FCC Chair Brendan Carr wrote on X, "For years, legacy TV networks assumed that their late night & daytime talk shows qualify as 'bona fide news' programs - even when motivated by purely partisan political purposes. Today, the FCC reminded them of their obligation to provide all candidates with equal opportunities."
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr says it's the "obligation" of programs on the broadcast networks to "provide all candidates with equal opportunities." (Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
Colbert, whose cancelled show officially goes off the air in May, accused Carr's newly-enforced guidance as an "attempt to silence me, Jimmy and Seth."
"Hey, I'm flattered you think that appearing on my show has the power to affect politics in any way, OK? I've been doing this job for 21 years, and let me tell you something, buddy. If our government had turned out the way I had chosen, you would not have the power to make this announcement," Colbert told Carr.
Kimmel similarly attacked President Donald Trump's "minions at the FCC" for "planning to make it difficult" for his shows and others to "interview politicians they don't align with."
"We are once again getting threatened by the FCC. I might need your help again," Kimmel told viewers, alluding to the liberal backlash over his brief suspension last year.
Network representatives for Kimmel, Colbert, Meyers and "The View" did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment.
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