FCC Chair Carr Denies Censoring Colbert Interview

The chair of the Federal Communications Commission Wednesday denied the government had censored CBS late-night show Stephen Colbert from airing a candidate interview and confirmed that the agency is investigating ABC's "The View."

FCC Chair Brendan Carr confirmed that the FCC had opened an enforcement into whether the ABC daytime talk show violated equal time rules for interviews with political candidates.

Colbert said Monday that the network's lawyers barred him from airing an interview with Democrat Texas State Representative James Talarico, who is running for his party's nomination for the U.S. Senate.

"The Late Show With Stephen Colbert" was reportedly not prohibited from airing an interview with Talarico, but was advised the broadcast could violate Federal Communications Commission equal time rules.

Colbert kept pushing back against CBS Tuesday, taking a copy of the network statement, wrapping it in a dog poop bag, and tossing it away. Colbert then ran his Talarico interview on YouTube instead and told viewers why he couldn't show it on CBS.

The FCC issued new guidance on January that said daytime and late-night talk shows were not exempt from equal time rules for candidate interviews.

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