“Is there any way we can screw him?” President Richard M. Nixon once inquired.

“We’ve been trying to,” an aide responded,referring to the White House’s attempts to remove an ABC talk show host from the airwaves,whose criticisms of the administration had placed that “son of a b-h” on the chief executive’s enemies list.

Over half a century ago, Nixon and his team sought to leverage the full power of the federal government – through calls to network executives, Federal Communications Commission complaints, IRS audits, and FBI investigations – to silence “The Dick Cavett Show.”

Cavett, who seemed to embody the liberalism that Nixon despised, had provoked the president’s anger by providing a platform for anti-war activists like John Kerry and Jane Fonda,as well as left-wing radicals such as Stokely Carmichael.

Ultimately, Nixon failed to silence Cavett.ABC executives were dedicated to independent media, and the broadcasting industry, having garnered the attention and trust of a vast audience, was insulated from political pressure.

This contrasts sharply with President Donald Trump’s second term, during which he has openly expressed his desire to rid the nation’s televisions of his critics and is making progress in doing so. In July 2025, CBS canceled “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert“, a program known for its sharp critiques of the administration.

Back then, at ABC, Leonard Goldenson had created the network from scratch and was invested in the ideals of independent media. Over at CBS, founder William S.Paley had spent decades building the network’s brand and reputation and held similar beliefs. They wanted to shield the respectability of their networks, which made them more resolute when confronted with political attacks.

Now, though, the ultimate decisions about what happens at ABC and CBS are made by executives at the megacorporations that own them.

Decades of deregulation – in particular, the Telecommunications Act of 1996which spurred a wave of media mergers and consolidation – have allowed broadcasting today to be dominated by a handful of massive conglomerates. They own not only the networks, but also studios, cable channels and internet services.

Thes media giants need government approval to further expand their empires. This includes the US$8 billion merger that made Paramount Skydance the owner of CBS in summer 2025 – a deal that was approved just a week after CBS announced the cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.” Disney, which owns ABC, also has major deals pending that require the government’s go-ahead.

If the ultimate goal is ever-increasing profits for shareholders, getting rid of a late night show may seem like a small price to pay – especially if a particular program threatens the government’s sign-off on a massive deal.

Charging ‘liberal bias’

“He relied on his vice president, Spiro Agnew, to slam the networks as part of an irresponsibly unfriendly liberal ‘unelected elite’ with ‘vast power.'”

The decline of ratings and media consolidation has left television more vulnerable to attempts at political intimidation than ever before.

Trump is far from the first conservative to use the television networks as a political punching bag. His strategy of tarring national broadcasters with the brush of “liberal media bias” can be traced back to right-wing media activists who, as early as the 1940s, argued that the mainstream media shut out conservative ideas and voices.

Nixon, convinced that the nation’s television industry was against him, brought those tactics to the White House. In public, he relied on his vice president, Spiro Agnew, to slam the networks as part of an irresponsibly hostile liberal “unelected elite” with “vast power.” in private,Nixon abused the office of the presidency to harass and intimidate broadcasting reporters, directors and executives.

These tactics largely failed. But in Nixon’s wake, partisan media activists like former fox News executive Roger Ailes and radio host Rush Limbaugh continued to popularize the idea of “liberal media bias” within the conservative movement.

Today, Trump’s charges of “liberal bias” or “fake news” galvanize his supporters – and make media executives sweat – as they’re a key part of modern right-wing identity.

But the president’s no-holds-barred approach is unprecedented. By threatening broadcasting licenses, instigating investigations and filing lawsuits – all while declaring the mainstream media “the enemy of the people” – trump has turned the dial up to 11.

His administration’s success in temporarily getting Kimmel off the air is obviously one more chapter in an ongoing crisis for free speech.Sadly, given the trends in the relationship between American media and politics over the past half-century, it likely won’t be the last.