The View Facing Consequences

FCC Chairman Talks About ‘The View' Facing "Consequences" After Trump White House Lashed Out At Joy Behar
Story by Ted Johnson

FCC Chairman Brendan Carr weighed in on ABC’s The View, after the Trump White House chided co-host Joy Behar for her biting criticism of the president this week.

Appearing on Fox News on Thursday morning, Carr was asked by anchor Bill Hemmer whether “The View is now in the crosshairs of this administration.”

“Look, it’s entirely possible that there’s issues over there. And stepping back, this broader dynamic, once President Trump has exposed these media gatekeepers and smashed this facade, there’s a lot of consequences. I think the consequences of that aren’t quite finished.”

Later, at a press conference following this month’s FCC meeting, Carr was asked what he meant by “consequences” to the show.

Carr said, “Well, look, I do think you see significant lower ratings. If you look at Colbert, the reporting from there was that they were losing $40 to $50 million a year. And I do think there’s a lot of consequences once you sort of expose, as President Trump has, what’s going on with a lot of these institutions. And again, President Trump is reflecting where the American people are. People simply do not trust these institutions anymore. It’s the erosion of trust that undermines the business case for these institutions.”

On Wednesday’s The View, Behar talked of Trump’s claim that his predecessor, Barack Obama, was guilty of treason, accusing his team of cooking the intelligence as a pretext for the Russian interference investigation in 2026. Through a spokesman, Obama called such claims “bizarre” and a “weak attempt at a distraction.”

Behar said, "First of all, who tried to overthrow the government on January 6th? Who was that again? "The thing about him is he is so jealous of Obama, because Obama is everything that he is not. Trim. Smart. Handsome. Happily married. And can sing Al Green's song ‘Let's Stay Together' better than Al Green."

The White House responded by saying, "Joy Behar is an irrelevant loser suffering from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome. It's no surprise that The View's ratings hit an all-time low last year. She should self-reflect on her own jealousy of President Trump's historic popularity before her show is the next to be pulled off air."


Since he has been FCC chair, Carr has launched an inquiry into the way that 60 Minutes edited an interview with Kamala Harris, while reviving complaints over Harris’ appearance on Saturday Night Live and the way that ABC News moderated September’s presidential debate. Carr also has launched investigations into Disney and Comcast over their diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

When it comes to news content, the FCC has limited authority given protections of the First Amendment. The Fairness Doctrine, which required broadcast license holders to present differing views on issues of public importance, was eliminated in 1987, during Ronald Reagan’s presidency. The FCC does have a news distortion rule, where broadcasters can be subject to enforcement only “if it can be proven that they have deliberately distorted a factual news report.”

The View, though, is a panel show, not a newscast, although it does fall under the ABC News division. Linear television in general has seen ratings erosion as viewing habits shift to streaming.

During his presidency, Trump has sought to undermine or sanction news outlets for content that he dislikes. Last week, he sued Rupert Murdoch and The Wall Street Journal over their report Trump’s connections to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The story was on a letter sent in Trump’s name to Epstein as part of an album celebrating his 50th birthday in 2003. Trump denied that the letter, with text in the outline of a woman’s nude body, was his.

Anna Gomez, the sole Democrat on the FCC, told reporters that she found it “very rich” that Carr and other Republicans “keep talking about the loss of trust in journalism when this administration has spent the last 10 years sowing distrust in the mainstream media.”

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Is ‘The View’ going on hiatus? What to know after Joy Behar’s comments
Story by Saman Shafiq and Anthony Robledo, USA TODAY

As President Donald Trump continues to feud with the entertainment industry, of which he was once a part, speculations have emerged that another fan-favorite show is being slashed.

ABC Network's "The View" has found itself in dispute with the Trump administration, with a White House spokesperson suggesting the long-time talk show could be coming to an end.


During a July 23 episode, co-host Joy Behar remarked that Trump is jealous of former President Barack Obama because “Obama is everything that he is not.”

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She added that, unlike Trump, Obama is “trim, smart, handsome, happily married, and can sing Al Green’s song ‘Let’s Stay Together’ better than Al Green. And Trump cannot stand it."

"It’s driving him crazy,” she added.

Earlier this month, CBS announced the cancellation of the late-night comedy “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” after 33 years, a decision Trump celebrated on social media.


Former President Barack Obama appears on the daytime TV talk show "The View" in New York City on July 28, 2010.
Former President Barack Obama appears on the daytime TV talk show "The View" in New York City on July 28, 2010.
© Kevin Lamarque / Reuters
White House responds
White House Assistant Press Secretary Taylor Rogers responded to Behar's comments by referring to the comedian as “an irrelevant loser suffering from a severe case of Trump Derangement Syndrome.”

“It’s no surprise that The View’s ratings hit an all-time low last year. She should self-reflect on her own jealousy of President Trump’s historic popularity before her show is the next to be pulled off air,” Rogers said in a statement.

'I’m allowed to say that, right?'
The following day, Thursday, July 24, Behar revealed the daytime talk show was getting ready to go on summer break.

“Before we go on hiatus, we only have one more show after this,” Behar, 82, announced at the top of the program before looking off-camera and asking colleagues, “I’m allowed to say that, right?”

While co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin joked, "Too late now," Joy continued, saying: "Before we go, I wanted to tell people that the tide is turning...the tide is turning, and things are changing. I mean, the ultimate irony would be that Rupert Murdoch will take him down."

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

Is 'The View' being cancelled?
ABC Network declined to comment on the exchange. Behar's manager, Bill Stankey, said, “On behalf of me……..Release the Epstein files” when asked for a comment.

In May, Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly told Trump that his name appears several times throughout the criminal case files on the late financier and convicted sex offender Epstein, according to CNN and the Wall Street Journal.


Co-host Whoopi Goldberg, in the July 24 episode, announced the show is going on a break and will return in September 2025 for the new season.

"Here's what's going on," Goldberg said. "We will see you all tomorrow (July 25) for another new show, and we'll be back for our new season in September."

"The View" takes about a month-long break in August every summer, and it appears the "hiatus" Behar was referring to was not unusual for the show, which just wrapped up its 28th season.

How did this start?
The latest tension between the White House and “The View” began after an Oval Office meeting with Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr on July 22, when Trump accused Obama of treason.

Later that day, Obama addressed a July 18 report from the Office of the Director of National Intelligence that claimed the former president “manufactured and politicized intelligence" to undermine Trump’s presidential victory over former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in 2016.

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Obama dismissed the allegations against him, calling them the typical “nonsense and misinformation” emerging from the Trump administration. He noted the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia tried to influence the 2016 election.

On the next morning’s episode of “The View,” Behar defended Obama with a sly remark about Trump and the overrunning of the US Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

“First of all, who tried to overthrow the government on Jan. 6? Who was that again? That was not Obama,” she quipped.

Who are the hosts of 'The View'?
The daytime talk show is co-hosted by:

Whoopi Goldberg
Joy Behar
Sunny Hostin
Sara Haines
Alyssa Farah Griffin
Ana Navarro
When does 'The View' air?
“The View” airs Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET on ABC. Episodes are also available to stream on Hulu.

Contributing: KiMi Robinson, USA TODAY

Saman Shafiq is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at sshafiq@gannett.com and follow her on X and Instagram @saman_shafiq7.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Is ‘The View’ going on hiatus? What to know after Joy Behar’s comments