February 17
2026
February 17
2026
MS NOW
with
Oliver Darcy, Nicole Wallace
The episode examines Stephen Colbert’s claim that CBS lawyers blocked a planned interview with Texas candidate James Tallarico, using the FCC’s “equal time” rules as the stated rationale, and explores how new FCC guidance could strip late-night and other broadcast talk shows of long-standing exemptions. The panel argues this reflects a politicized FCC under chair Brendan Carr, aimed at intimidating or silencing critics of Donald Trump, while networks may be capitulating out of legal and corporate pressure. It also highlights the irony and limits of broadcast-focused regulation in a modern media ecosystem, where the allegedly suppressed interview quickly spread online and drew far more attention than a standard TV segment.