Disney lawyer says US seeks to censor, control content it does not want

A lawyer for Walt Disney urged a US judge on Tuesday to block the Federal Communications Commission's early review of licenses for its eight company-owned ABC TV stations, saying President Donald Trump's administration is seeking to censor and punish the company for airing content it does not like.



The company's lawsuit, filed in August, poses a key test for the free speech rights of broadcasters under the US Constitution's First Amendment versus the Trump administration's efforts to reshape the media landscape.



Trump has repeatedly urged broadcasters to drop comedy or news programs he dislikes or which have joked about or criticized him or his administration.



The Republican president also has repeatedly called on the FCC to strip stations of licenses after criticizing news and other programming.



The First Amendment protects against government abridgment of free speech.



"Our concern is that we are chilled. We are making different editorial decisions," Disney lawyer Beth Wilkinson told US District Judge Loren AliKhan during a hearing in the company's suit seeking to block the unusual early FCC license reviews, comparing ABC's fate to being under a guillotine during the French Revolution.