What to know about the "equal time" rule at heart of Colbert, CBS fight

Driving the news: Colbert said on air that CBS' lawyers told his show that it could not feature James Talarico, a Texas state representative, on the broadcast.

• Colbert suggested that this was due to the FCC's equal time rule, which requires broadcast networks and radio stations to give equal time to candidates in an election.
• "I was told, in some uncertain terms, that not only could I not have him on, I could not mention me not having him on," he said.
• The interview is available on "The Late Show" YouTube channel, which is not subject to the same equal time requirements.

Between the lines: Talarico is running in the primary against Rep. Jasmine Crockett as Democrats hope to flip the Senate seat in Texas.

• CBS said in a statement Tuesday that it received "legal guidance" that airing the interview with Talarico could obligate it to offer Crockett equal time.

What they're saying: Commissioner Anna Gomez, the sole Democrat on the FCC, called CBS' move censorship.

• "This is yet another troubling example of corporate capitulation in the face of this administration's broader campaign to censor and control speech," Gomez said in a statement, adding that the FCC has "no lawful authority to pressure broadcasters for political purposes."
• "It is no secret that Paramount, CBS's parent company, has regulatory matters before the government, but corporate interests cannot justify retreating from airing newsworthy content."

The FCC did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment Tuesday.

Here's what to know about the equal-time rule:

History of the equal-time rule

How it works: The equal time rule requires broadcasters give equal opportunity for airtime to all "legally qualified candidates who submit a request," Sydney Snower wrote in a 2021 article published in the The Federal Communications Law Journal.

• The rule originates from Section 18 of the Radio Act of 1927.

However, Congress created four exemptions in 1959 because the FCC at the time worried the rule would make it impossible for news programs to report on candidates.

• One of exemptions concerned "bona fide news interviews," an umbrella that covers late night programming, the FCC concluded in 2006.

Trump administration changes to the rule

Catch up quick: That recently changed when Brendan Carr, President Trump's FCC chairman pick, issued guidance reinterpreting the bona fide exemptions — specifically referencing "late night and daytime talk shows."

• The guidance said "use of broadcast airtime by a legally qualified candidate would require the broadcaster to place a record" in an online political file so other legally qualified candidates can submit an equal opportunity request.

Colbert called equal time "the FCC's most time-honored rule, right after 'no nipples at the Super Bowl.'"

Flashback: Fox News recently reported the FCC launched an equal-time probe into "The View" for its own Talarico interview.

• "Let's be clear on what this is," Gomez said at the time. "This is government intimidation, not a legitimate investigation."

Adam Bonin, a Philadelphia-based lawyer specializing in political law, wrote on social media that Carr "is leveraging his position to force late night and daytime talk show hosts to exclude Democratic candidates."

• "When one candidate does something newsworthy, you're not required to interview everyone," he said, adding that the exemption allowed TV stations and entertainment talk shows "to make choices."
• "CBS could choose to fight this. They could defend the legitimate news purposes of Colbert's interviews," he added.