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How Brendan Carr, Trump’s FCC chair, is rattling media giants

BBG News

Amid President Trump’s fusillades against the media, a recent strike stood out:

In a recent statement, the head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), appointed by former President Trump, criticized media company Comcast (which owns NBC and MSNBC) for the political bias he perceived in their television news coverage.

Carr claims that Comcast manipulated their news coverage about Kilmar Abrego Garcia, an immigrant who was inadvertently deported to El Salvador. Trump has suggested that Abrego Garcia is a member of MS-13 (which he denies), and officials from the administration have disobeyed a judge’s command to bring him back to the U.S., creating growing tensions between the administration and federal courts.

Comcast’s outlets misled the American people for several days by giving the impression that Abrego Garcia was merely an upstanding U.S. citizen and just an ordinary resident of Maryland, according to Carr’s latest post. He argued that such manipulation of news content is unacceptable.

In just a few short days, a traditional law organization backed up Carr’s sentiments by submitting a plea to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), the body that oversees broadcast licenses, requesting an examination into whether the portrayal of Abrego Garcia on NBC, ABC, and CBS had twisted facts.

The situation serves as another illustration of how Carr has undergone a remarkable metamorphosis, transitioning from a relatively subdued figure focusing on communications policies to becoming one of Trump’s most passionate cultural advocates.

As FCC chairman since January’s end, Carr has persistently taken aim at the corporate owners of ABC, CBS, and NBC – networks that the president reportedly disfavors. In the fall, a lawsuit was filed by Trump against CBS over alterations made to a pre-election “60 Minutes” interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris. Trump asserts that the interview was manipulated to present Harris more favorably, and has requested $20 billion in damages. According to Trump, CBS should forfeit its broadcasting licenses.

Carr initiated a Federal Communications Commission (FCC) investigation to determine if the alterations made by “60 Minutes” qualified as significant news distortion.

I instructed CBS to provide the original footage of the Harris interview, and they did as requested. Extras from the recording verified that my statements were accurately represented, thus strengthening CBS’ claim that there was no manipulation in their interview. However, this matter has caused quite a stir within CBS’ parent company, Paramount Global, and has temporarily halted the planned acquisition by David Ellison’s Skydance Media.

60 Minutes’ head stepped down last week, attributing it to corporate forces that stifled his journalistic autonomy.

In a statement, Paramount views the FCC’s review and President Trump’s lawsuit as distinct matters, choosing to refrain from providing additional comments. Neither the FCC nor a representative of Carr responded to requests for an interview.

According to conservatives, some mainstream broadcast networks are accused of exhibiting excessive liberal bias and being resistant to diverse perspectives. They argue that this bias has had negative consequences for America, leading to a decline in public confidence in national news sources. Furthermore, they suggest that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) might need to intervene in these cases.

Over the past ten years, the FCC has been less active in ensuring that broadcasters meet their public duty requirements, as stated by Carr during an interview with Punchbowl News in March. His aim is to strengthen the agency’s regulatory power once more.

If there’s an issue with something broadcasted…, you can contact the FCC at 45 L Street, Northeast. They have the option to return their licenses to us. (Carr)

Critics of Carr argued that using the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) regulatory power over broadcasters under the guise of safeguarding free speech actually undermines it instead.

Analyst and ex-FCC staffer, Blair Levin, posed a question to Brendan Carr: “Are you currently the one responsible for determining which news is worthy of coverage and what isn’t?” This is because it appears that such authority isn’t mentioned in the law.

In 1934, Congress created the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) as an autonomous agency responsible for overseeing telephone services and radio waves utilized by broadcasters, often referred to as airwaves. The FCC was intended to be a bipartisan entity with three commissioners from the current president’s political party and two from the opposing one. (The fifth commissioner, who was nominated by President Trump, is yet to receive confirmation from the Senate.)

This year, the commissioners have collaborated on crucial matters such as reducing unwanted automated calls (robocalls) and advocating for shared use of radio frequencies (spectrum) among satellite networks. However, other topics tend to be more politically divisive.

As a film enthusiast reminiscing about my past, I was raised in the vibrant surroundings of Washington D.C., nurtured by a conservative upbringing. My late father, who dedicated his career to law, was an attorney with a keen focus on white-collar crimes. Intriguingly, he had the privilege of representing President Nixon at one point in his life.

After completing his studies at Georgetown University, Carr obtained his law degree from The Catholic University, it was there that he encountered his future spouse, Machalagh. Notably, Machalagh held the position of Chief of Staff for Kevin McCarthy during his tenure as Speaker of the House in California.

They belong to some influential pairs within Washington D.C. Early in the year, she took up a position as the head of global policy at Palantir Technologies, a data analytics company owned by billionaire Peter Thiel.

Two years ago, Brendan Carr raised his public standing by penning the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) section within the conservative manifesto titled “Project 2025,” which outlined a potential second term agenda for President Trump.

He spent a significant portion of his 15-page document focusing on his enduring commitments, such as controlling the influence of large tech companies, boosting national security, stimulating economic growth, and maintaining transparency and effective management at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

There was no mention of news bias.

Rather than maintaining the status quo, Carr advocates for the commercial exploitation of the electromagnetic spectrum via public auctions – an initiative that has faced obstacles under President Biden’s administration. Carr aims to facilitate faster internet access through low-Earth-orbiting satellites, a goal he shares with Elon Musk, founder of SpaceX, as part of his support for the Starlink satellite constellation.

As FCC chairman, Carr has made it clear that he aligns with President Trump’s team. He was part of an exclusive delegation that included Trump and Musk to witness a SpaceX rocket launch in Texas in November. He’s also visited Mar-a-Lago, traveled on Air Force One, and recently wore a gold-colored lapel pin the size of a walnut, shaped like Trump’s head, in a recent photo.

Carr has advocated for Congress to slash funding for public radio and TV stations.

In his new role as chairman, he prioritized dismantling initiatives focused on diversity, equality, and inclusion within the organizations led by Bob Iger (Walt Disney Co.), Brian L. Roberts (Comcast), and Hans Vestberg (Verizon). He immediately penned stern letters to express his concerns about their respective internal programs.

He initiated probes into the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) practices of these firms. However, the companies chose not to provide a statement.

Carr has warned that he will prevent mergers unless companies scrap their Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. Verizon is aiming to secure approval for its $9.6-billion acquisition of Frontier Communications.

According to Gigi Sohn, a former legal advisor at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and a senior researcher at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society, he’s putting significant pressure on these large corporations. They find it difficult to resist the FCC due to the concern that they may face penalties from the agency in the future if they do so.

To support his argument, Carr frequently highlights the ebb of public confidence. In a December correspondence to Iger at Disney, he criticized ABC for contributing to the issue.

“More Americans trust gas station sushi than the legacy national media,” Carr wrote on X.

Hollywood Inc.

Brendan Carr’s move as FCC Chairman highlights concerns that President Trump may leverage his authority to intimidate news outlets that aren’t aligned with his views.

Carr hasn’t always been so politically strident.

During Trump’s initial tenure, shortly after being appointed as commissioner, Carr emphasized his past at the FCC under both Republican and Democratic leadership. He expressed this during a House subcommittee meeting in October 2017, stating, “These varied experiences have given me a deep understanding of the significance of bipartisan agreement and striving for shared ground.

In early 2021, Carr spoke out against Democrats who proposed removing Fox News from cable packages following the violent uprising at the Capitol on January 6, 2021.

In his statement, Carr expressed that a newsroom’s choice of stories to report on and their perspective in reporting should be free from any interference or influence by government officials.

Carr openly admitted that the beginning of his term at the FCC has been quite intense. Speaking at the Free State Foundation conference this past spring, he revealed that such an aggressive start is often characteristic of chairmanships due to their brief nature. He expressed a desire to achieve significant milestones during his tenure so that he can depart with a sense of fulfillment and no lingering regrets.

Some observers of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) predict that Chairman Ajit Pai, or possibly Carr in the future, may speed up restructuring the agency once the third Republican, Olivia Trusty, is confirmed by the Senate. Previous chairman Tom Wheeler suggests a calculated approach by Carr to stir up controversy with limited options for response.

According to Wheeler, Brendan Carr possesses exceptional talents, remarkable intelligence, and a keen political acumen. He skillfully employs these abilities to circumvent any scrutiny from the judiciary.

As a passionate film buff, I believe that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should maintain its autonomy and exercise significant power. In a recent opinion piece he penned, Chairman Wheeler raised concerns about Commissioner Carr’s actions, suggesting they were strategically intended to bypass judicial scrutiny. This is because these actions were taken under Carr’s authority as chairman, yet without the necessary vote from the full commission.

“He is accomplishing [his objectives] by investigations, pronouncements and threats,” Wheeler said.

A band of Democratic Senators have proposed a bill to reinforce the Federal Communications Commission’s status as an autonomous body and prohibit it from employing its powers to stifle particular perspectives or coerce broadcasters into adopting any political ideology.

However, recent judicial decisions indicate that Carr’s ability to penalize Trump’s opponents might be restricted. This past month, an appellate court nullified a $57-million penalty previously imposed by the FCC chair on AT&T, ruling that the FCC had overreached its authority.

According to Democratic FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez, the complaints about NBC’s reporting on the immigrant from El Salvador, Abrego Garcia, do not align with the technical term ‘news distortion’.

Gomez stated that it’s all a part of a recurring scheme to intimidate, harass, and ultimately suppress. What I find encouraging is that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) may revert back to its primary role. As it stands now, the actions being taken not only infringe on the 1st Amendment rights but also break our established laws.”

This version maintains the original meaning while using simpler language and a more conversational tone.

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2025-04-28 13:31

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