Topline

President Donald Trump on Sunday night attacked ABC and NBC’s news coverage of his administration—claiming it was “97%” negative—and said he supports the idea of the two networks having their broadcast licenses revoked, escalating his fight with the news media, which has involved legal cases and other regulatory threats.

U.S. President Donald Trump continued his attacks on media outlets he views an unfavorable of him.

Getty ImagesKey Facts

Trump attacked the two broadcast networks in a series of posts on his Truth Social platform, alleging: “ABC & NBC FAKE NEWS, two of the worst and most biased networks in history, give me 97% BAD STORIES,” despite what he claimed was a successful first 8 months in office.

The president then suggested that this alleged negative coverage of him means the two networks “ARE SIMPLY AN ARM OF THE DEMOCRAT PARTY AND SHOULD, ACCORDING TO MANY, HAVE THEIR LICENSES REVOKED BY THE FCC.”

Trump said he is totally in favor of such a revocation, as he again accused the networks of being “biased and untruthful, an actual threat to our Democracy,” without citing any evidence.

In a follow-up post, the president reiterated the license revocation threat, before suggesting that “at a minimum,” they should be forced to “pay up BIG” for their licensed broadcast spectrum, an idea previously endorsed by billionaire and former Trump ally Elon Musk.

Trump indicated that such a fee, which is not currently levied on networks using the airwaves, could be “Millions of Dollars a year.”

What Did Trump Say About His Poll Numbers?

Before his posts attacking ABC and NBC, Trump falsely claimed he now has the “highest poll numbers” he has ever had, “some in the 60’s and even 70’s.” In the post, Trump appeared to dismiss a series of negative polling numbers about him as “Fake News.”

What Do We Know About Trump’s Actual Polling Numbers?

Despite Trump’s claims of “high popularity,” recent polling numbers from major outlets, paint a much less flattering picture for the president. A Reuters/Ipsos poll published last week, pegged his approval rating at 40% while his disapproval rating stood at 54% (up two points from July). The poll was taken after Trump met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska earlier this month, and it found that 54% Americans, including 1-in-5 Republicans, believe he is too closely aligned with Russia. All other polls released this month showed Trump’s net approval ratings in the negatives, ranging from -3 to -20 points.

Key Background

Trump’s attacks on NBC and ABC News come less than two months after Paramount, the parent company of the broadcast network CBS, announced it had reached a $16 million settlement with the president. Trump had filed a lawsuit against the network over a CBS News 60 Minutes interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris that aired ahead of last year’s election. The president claimed CBS News had deliberately edited the interview to make the Democratic presidential candidate’s replies appear more competent. A few weeks after the settlement, Paramount’s pending $8 billion merger with Skydance was approved by the FCC. After greenlighting the deal FCC Chair and Trump appointee Brendan Carr praised Skydance’s commitment to making changes at CBS, including news and entertainment programming, “embody a diversity of viewpoints,” and ending Diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

Tangent

An hour before his posts about ABC and NBC, Trump commented on former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie’s Sunday morning appearance on ABC News. Trump suggested that Christie could face a federal probe over his handling of the 2013 “Bridgegate” scandal. On ABC News, Christie spoke about the raid on former National Security Adviser John Bolton’s home and said, “It’s funny to hear the president talk the way he does about Bolton and classified information, yet when he had classified information, the same rules didn’t apply. In response, Trump said, “Can anyone believe anything that Sloppy Chris says? Do you remember the way he lied about the dangerous and deadly closure of the George Washington Bridge in order to stay out of prison, at the same time sacrificing people who worked for him, including a young mother, who spent years trying to fight off the vicious charges against her.” The president then added: “For the sake of JUSTICE, perhaps we should start looking at that very serious situation again? NO ONE IS ABOVE THE LAW!”

Further Reading

Trump’s Approval Rating At Record Low As Most Say He’s Too Close To Putin (Forbes)

Trump’s War With The Media: Paramount Settles With Trump Over Kamala Harris Interview (Forbes)