On Monday, Stephen Colbert told viewers that CBS lawyers had instructed him not to air a scheduled interview with James Talarico, a Texas Democrat running for U.S. Senate in a March 3 primary against Rep. Jasmine Crockett. Colbert characterized this as censorship driven by FCC pressure and posted the interview on YouTube instead, where it accumulated roughly 6 million views. CBS issued a statement clarifying it did not 'prohibit' the broadcast but had provided legal guidance that airing the interview could trigger the FCC's equal time rule, which would require offering equivalent airtime to Talarico's primary opponents.
The dispute stems from a January FCC public notice under Chair Brendan Carr reversing a 2006 guidance that had exempted late-night talk shows from the equal time rule as 'bona fide news interviews.' The FCC's new position is that partisan talk shows do not qualify for this exemption. Carr publicly stated no censorship occurred and called the episode 'Democrat on Democrat violence,' arguing CBS simply warned Colbert he might need to give equal time to Crockett.
The FCC separately announced enforcement actions against 'The View' for airing its own Talarico interview. CBS's parent company, Paramount, recently settled a Trump lawsuit over a '60 Minutes' segment and received merger approval from the Trump administration.
Talarico's campaign raised $2.5 million within 24 hours of the controversy. Crockett herself acknowledged the incident likely gave her rival a boost. Talarico technically remains unqualified for Georgia-style equal time protections until March, but is a legally qualified candidate in Texas. The March 3 primary is closely contested, with polls showing the race within single digits in both directions.
