FCC Chair Calls Texas Candidate's YouTube Interview a Hoax After Network Cites Equal-Time Rule

Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr said on Saturday that Texas Senate candidate James Talarico was repeating a "hoax" previously aired on a late-night program, after host Jimmy Kimmel posted a 20-minute interview with the Democrat on YouTube instead of broadcasting it on ABC. Carr wrote on his X account that Talarico was "running the same hoax he did a few months ago on Colbert for the purpose of getting clicks and donations" and claimed the candidate was "banking on people not understanding the statute or operating as partisan lemmings."

Kimmel had earlier explained that the decision to keep the interview off the network’s airwaves was driven by what he described as FCC threats toward ABC, echoing Stephen Colbert’s earlier claim that his own interview with Talarico was blocked for similar reasons. Both hosts linked the agency’s actions to the FCC’s equal-time rule, which requires broadcasters to provide comparable airtime to opposing political candidates. The rule, traditionally exempt for daytime and late-night talk shows, was announced in January by the FCC as no longer applying to those programs.

Despite the controversy, the Kimmel interview has amassed more than 9 million views on YouTube, making it the second-most-watched video on the host’s channel in 2026, according to The Wrap. Colbert’s online-only interview with Talarico from February is the most-viewed YouTube video of the year for the comedian.

Talarico has referenced the FCC’s alleged censorship in fundraising communications, reportedly raising $2.5 million after the Colbert interview and mentioning the Kimmel appearance in a recent email to supporters. The issue surfaced as the FCC addressed questions about the equal-time rule in relation to Senator Ted Cruz’s appearance on ESPN’s College GameDay, a cable program that Carr noted is not subject to the rule.