Major U.S. Networks Decline Live Coverage of Trump Speech; Fox Airs Broadcast

Tensions between the Trump administration and the media have escalated further as major U.S. broadcasting networks declined to air President Trump's national address live, according to reports by AP and Reuters on July 16 (local time).

According to the reports, among the three major terrestrial networks, ABC and NBC, along with the news channel CNN, did not broadcast President Trump's speech live on television, which took place at 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time on July 16 (10:00 a.m. KST on July 17).

ABC and NBC maintained their existing programming, including a quiz show and a wildlife program, respectively, while only airing portions of the speech intermittently.

CNN continued its regular programming hosted by anchor Kaitlan Collins.

Instead, these networks provided live coverage of the speech through their own streaming platforms or mobile websites, which have relatively lower public accessibility.

CBS, one of the three major terrestrial networks, began its live broadcast a few minutes after the speech had already started.

It has been a standard practice in the U.S. broadcasting industry for major networks to simultaneously air presidential prime-time speeches that contain significant policy announcements or messages to the nation.

Pro-Trump broadcasters, including Fox, aired the speech live that day.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt emphasized the importance of the speech in a previous briefing, stating, "Networks should air it, and the American people should watch it," but her request did not prevail.

President Trump hinted at retaliation.

During the speech, targeting the networks that were not airing him live, he said, "They use billions of dollars worth of public airwaves for free, yet they do not report honestly," adding, "Their broadcast licenses should be revoked."

Media experts assessed that broadcasters have the right to decide what to air under the First Amendment, which guarantees freedom of speech, and analyzed that this situation is intertwined with the ongoing struggles of networks currently at odds with the Trump administration.

Disney, the parent company of ABC, is currently under investigation by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regarding issues such as potential violations of broadcast regulations by the daytime talk show The View.

It is reported that the FCC could begin the process of revoking the broadcast licenses of eight ABC stations owned by Disney as early as next month.

The FCC is also investigating the diversity policies of NBC and its parent company, Comcast.

In his speech that day, President Trump claimed that evidence has emerged showing extensive interference by China in the 2020 U.S. presidential election, in which he failed to win re-election, in an attempt to influence the results.

Prior to the speech, some Democratic figures, including Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, had urged networks not to air the speech live, citing the possibility that President Trump would repeat false claims.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.