Former Fox executive Preston Padden has urged the FCC to reverse its January 2025 dismissal and reopen a petition to revoke the broadcast license of Fox-owned WTXF-TV (Fox 29) in Philadelphia.
Padden, who ran Fox’s television stations division from 1989 to 1997, submitted a new letter calling the FCC’s rejection of the challenge “a grave mistake.” He argues that evidence from Fox’s $787.5 million Dominion Voting Systems settlement proves the company knowingly broadcast false 2020 election claims, disqualifying it from holding any broadcast license under the FCC’s long-standing character requirements.
In January 2025, the FCC dismissed the challenge without a hearing, stating there was insufficient evidence directly tied to the Philadelphia station. MAD immediately appealed, and Padden’s latest filing is intended to bolster that appeal.
Fox Corporation has called the effort “frivolous” and a First Amendment violation, emphasizing that Fox 29 produces more than 60 hours of local news weekly and that cable and broadcast operations are legally separate.
If the FCC ultimately revokes the license—an outcome experts consider unlikely—Fox 29 would be forced to stop broadcasting or be sold, marking the first time a major network-owned station lost its license over news distortion allegations.