ABC is challenging the Federal Communications Commission, arguing that the agency is using its licensing authority to punish the network for its coverage and political viewpoint. First Amendment scholars Jane Bambauer and Eugene Volokh are joined by Duke law professor Stuart Benjamin to examine the lawsuit, the FCC’s unusually broad “public interest” power, and the special rules that have long governed broadcast speech. They discuss allegations of retaliation and pretext, the chilling effect of costly government investigations, and whether this dispute could prompt the Supreme Court to reconsider broadcasters’ second-class status under the First Amendment.
Recorded on August 25, 2026.
Articles
Many people have appropriately criticized President Trump’s promise to give $5,000 to every American adult if the voters elect enough Senators and House members to keep Republican control of each chamber.
September 18, 2026
Articles
On the latest episode of GoodFellows, senior fellows John Cochrane, H.R. McMaster, and Niall Ferguson, moderated as always by distinguished policy fellow Bill Whalen, speak with their Hoover colleague Senior Fellow Joshua Rauh about California’s billionaire wealth tax ballot measure.
September 19, 2026
Articles
Far-right nationalist populist parties are making the running everywhere from Washington to Warsaw. So why be so alarmed about a little regional electoral victory for one such party, the Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), in one federal state, Saxony-Anhalt? “Because it’s Germany!” is the almost instinctive answer in many heads around the world.
September 19, 2026
