On October 5, 2025, former President Donald Trump ignited a fresh wave of controversy by calling for the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to investigate NBC's broadcasting license, aiming his ire squarely at civil rights leader and television host Reverend Al Sharpton. The move, broadcast to millions through Trump's favored social media platform, Truth Social, came just days after Sharpton's MSNBC show, PoliticsNation, featured Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal as a guest. During the appearance, Blumenthal harshly criticized Trump, sparking a rapid-fire response from the former president.
Trump's post, brimming with personal barbs and sweeping accusations, revisited his long and complicated history with Sharpton. "I knew Al Sharpton for many years, not that it matters, but he was a major 'TRUMP' fan," Trump wrote. He went further, claiming, "[Sharpton would] ask me to go to his fake Rallies all the time, because I brought BIG Crowds, and he couldn't get anybody to come without me." According to VIBE, Trump also dredged up the Tawana Brawley case, calling it "one of the worst Low Level Scams in History," and suggesting it had set Sharpton back "BIG TIME."
But Trump’s criticisms didn't stop at Sharpton. He took aim at Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, labeling him the "Chairman of Fake News NBC," and alleged that Roberts was "afraid to take [Sharpton] off [the air] because it wouldn't be 'Politically Correct.'" Trump argued that Sharpton had been handed "one of the Lowest Rated Shows in Television History," referring to PoliticsNation, which began as a weekday program in August 2011 but now airs weekends at 5 p.m. Eastern.
Trump's message was clear: he believes NBC and its cable affiliate MSNBC are unfairly biased. "This is just one of the many reasons that the Federal Communications Commission should look into the license of NBC, which shows almost exclusively positive Democrat content. Likewise, ABC Fake News — About the same thing, 97% negative to Republicans!" he wrote, as reported by VIBE and the Daily Mail.
Yet, as both outlets point out, the FCC's authority is not as sweeping as Trump suggests. The FCC licenses broadcast stations, not cable networks like MSNBC, which means its regulatory reach over Sharpton’s show is limited. Still, Trump’s demand signals his ongoing frustration with what he perceives as a media landscape stacked against conservatives and the Republican Party.
This latest episode is hardly an isolated incident. Trump has repeatedly targeted media outlets and personalities he views as hostile. Just last month, he celebrated the announced end of CBS’s The Late Show With Stephen Colbert in 2026, gloating on social media, "I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!"
The late-night wars didn’t end there. Trump also lambasted Jimmy Kimmel after ABC reinstated the comedian’s show following a temporary suspension. Jimmy Kimmel Live! had been taken off-air after Kimmel made controversial remarks about conservative media figure Charlie Kirk’s death. Trump fumed, "I can't believe ABC Fake News gave Jimmy Kimmel his job back. The White House was told by ABC that his Show was cancelled! Something happened between then and now because his audience is GONE, and his 'talent' was never there. Why would they want someone back who does so poorly, who's not funny, and who puts the Network in jeopardy by playing 99% positive Democrat GARBAGE."
According to VIBE, the FCC’s involvement in the Kimmel matter was also limited, but Trump’s former FCC chairman Brendan Carr did issue a warning to ABC over the incident. The show’s suspension, however, was short-lived, and after considerable backlash, Jimmy Kimmel Live! returned to air on September 23, 2025.
Sharpton, for his part, has not shied away from critiquing Trump. Over recent months, he has accused the former president of "targeting cities with Black mayors" and using Vice President Kamala Harris as a distraction from the ongoing Epstein files controversy. These pointed criticisms have aired on PoliticsNation, which, despite Trump’s claims about its ratings, remains a fixture of MSNBC’s weekend lineup.
Trump’s latest salvo fits a familiar pattern of attacking media organizations he perceives as adversarial. He has frequently accused networks like NBC and ABC of overwhelming bias, claiming, as he did this week, that their coverage is "97% negative to Republicans." The former president’s social media posts often blur the lines between policy advocacy and personal grievance, weaving together past slights, media ratings, and political accusations into a single narrative.
Media analysts note that Trump’s strategy is not new. During his presidency, he regularly threatened to pull broadcast licenses from networks he accused of "fake news," despite the legal and regulatory obstacles to such actions. The FCC, an independent agency, licenses individual stations rather than entire networks, and its ability to police content is tightly constrained by the First Amendment and decades of legal precedent.
Nevertheless, Trump’s attacks have a real-world impact. They energize his base, put pressure on network executives, and keep the issue of media bias in the national conversation. They also draw sharp responses from those targeted. As of press time, Sharpton’s team had not issued a formal comment on Trump’s latest remarks, but the reverend’s history of responding forcefully to critics suggests a public rebuttal may be forthcoming.
While Trump’s call for an FCC investigation is unlikely to result in regulatory action against NBC or MSNBC, it underscores the persistent tension between the former president and the mainstream media. His accusations of political correctness, low ratings, and Democratic favoritism are red meat for his supporters, even as they are dismissed by network executives and many media watchdogs as unfounded or exaggerated.
Behind the headlines, the feud raises deeper questions about the role of media in American democracy, the limits of government regulation, and the enduring power of celebrity and personality in shaping public opinion. As the 2026 election cycle looms, with Trump once again a central figure, the clash between the former president and the media establishment seems destined to continue—on air, online, and in the court of public opinion.
For now, the spotlight remains on Trump, Sharpton, and the networks caught between them, with the FCC—willing or not—cast as a potential referee in a bout that shows no signs of ending soon.