The corporate overlords of "The View" have asked the hosts to tone down their political rhetoric, particularly their criticism of president Donald Trump.
The six regular panelists – Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sara Haines, Ana Navarro, Sunny Hostin, and Alyssa Farah Griffin – consistently bash the Republican president, his administration officials and his policies, but Disney CEO Bob Iger and ABC News president Almin Karamehmedovic have suggested they focus less on politics, two sources told The Daily Beast.
"Karamehmedovic highlighted episodes with celebrity guests that he said were highly rated, one source said, and encouraged them to lean into such coverage moving forward," the website reported. "The move was not framed as an edict, one source said, but the suggestion alone rankled the hosts."
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The panelists strongly pushed back on the suggestion, and Navarro in particular pointed out that viewers seek out their perspective on political topics, the sources said, and ultimately they found the requests "silly" and told the network bosses they wouldn't change.
"This is what our audience wants," the panelists said, according to the sources. "Isn’t it gonna look kind of bad if we’re all of a sudden not talking about politics?’”
Navarro spoke to Iger directly last week at Disney’s Upfront presentation day to advertisers and thanked him for his support, according to multiple sources, but they said he reaffirmed his suggestion about toning down the political rhetoric, and one source said network bosses believe that's what viewers want.
"[ABC will] constantly have conversations with talent based on viewer feedback, and this instance was no different," said one source familiar with the matter.
Nonetheless, "The View" sits at the top of the ratings among daytime talk shows and news programs in the first quarter of 2025, according to TheWrap. But Trump's threats to "investigate" media companies seems to be weighing on the minds of corporate bosses.
“Bob Iger writes a check for $15 million and then the FCC opens an investigation into DEI? What are they thinking?” one source said. “If anybody could stand up to Trump, it’s Bob Iger, and he already decided not to.”
