Trump lashed out at NBC and ABC Thursday night after both networks declined to carry his prime-time address on their main broadcast channels, demanding their broadcast licenses be revoked and accusing them of being part of a conspiracy to suppress his message. Both networks instead streamed the speech on their digital news platforms and aired news coverage — mostly fact-checking– afterward.
During the address, Trump claimed the networks were “part of a plot” and argued that refusing to air his remarks amounted to election-related misconduct.
“In a rare move, NBC and ABC fake news have both said that they would not cover this speech,” Trump said. “They and others in the media are part of a plot… Fraud like this should mean a revocation of their licenses.”
The speech itself focused on Trump’s long-running claims that American elections remain vulnerable to manipulation. He asserted that China carried out what he called “the largest compromise of election data in history,” alleging that Chinese actors obtained information from roughly 220 million U.S. voter files and that the breach exposed serious weaknesses in the nation’s election systems.
However, Trump did not present evidence showing that any votes were altered or that the alleged acquisition of voter information changed election outcomes. Previous U.S. intelligence assessments concluded there was no evidence that foreign actors altered the technical aspects of the 2020 election, and election security experts note that much voter registration information is publicly available, meaning access to those records does not by itself demonstrate election interference.
The decision by ABC and NBC not to air the speech on their primary broadcast networks reflected concerns over airing unverified election claims live without context. Both organizations made the address available through their streaming platforms while providing news coverage and summaries after it concluded. Fox News carried the speech live, while CBS aired it with fact-checking and later cut away from the address.
Trump has repeatedly railed against news outlets over stories he doesn’t like and threatened to revoke broadcasters’ licenses for reporting he doesn’t like.