Channel Blackout Briefs: Trump Intervenes In YouTube TV vs. Univision; Comcast-Yes Update; YouTube TV’s Next Carriage Fight

By Phillip Swann
The  TV Answer Man – Follow me on X.

President Trump Urges Google to Return Univision to YouTube TV
The Google-owned YouTube TV live streaming service last week lost the Univision suite of channels in a carriage dispute. And now President Trump is intervening with a Truth Social post urging Google to restore the Spanish-language channels. Noting Univision hosted a Town Hall program featuring Trump during the 2024 campaign, the president said the absence of the channel on YouTube TV would hurt the Republican Party in the 2026 mid-term elections. No word from Google on President Trump’s statement.

Comcast-Yes Network Negotiations Go Into Extra Innings
The short-term carriage pact between Comcast and the Yes Network, signed last spring, was set to expire last week. However, Front Office Sports reports that another short-term extension has been reached. Yes is the regional TV home of the New York Yankees and Brooklyn Nets.

YouTube TV Faces Disney Carriage Fight Next
Now that YouTube TV has negotiated a new agreement with NBC, the streamer must turn its attention to its deal with Disney which is expected to end by month’s end. Neither company has commented, but the possibility that the nation’s biggest live streaming service could lose ESPN will make this one to watch.

DIRECTV’s Mission Broadcasting Blackout Now Three Years Old
DIRECTV in October 2022 lost 26 Mission Broadcasting-owned local channels in a carriage fight. This month, the blackout turns three years ago and, despite occasional optimistic statements from DIRECTV, there’s no indication that the channels will ever return. The local stations are managed by Nexstar which has been involved in various legal scraps with DIRECTV.

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