FCC Chair Jumps on Trump's Media Criticism

The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission again is dangling the ultimate penalty over broadcasters, this time for how their news operations are covering the war with Iran. Brendan Carr threatened on social media Saturday that TV stations could lose their licenses if they continue to air "hoaxes and news distortions" in war reporting, the New York Times reports. He added that broadcasters should "correct course before their license renewals come up," saying, "Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not."

Carr was amplifying a Truth Social post from President Trump, who attacked coverage of the war and singled out a Wall Street Journal report that five US refueling planes were hit in Saudi Arabia, calling its headline "intentionally misleading" and accusing journalists of wanting the US to lose the war. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday railed against Middle East coverage by CNN, saying he looks forward to when it's controlled by Trump ally and Paramount Skydance owner David Ellison, whose proposed $111 billion acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery would give him control of the cable news network. The FCC issues licenses to over-the-air television and radio broadcasters, NBC News points out, but not networks—or the Journal, or CNN.

Carr, a Trump appointee who has repeatedly floated pulling licenses over programming decisions, would face a legal wall: Communications law experts note that revoking licenses is deliberately difficult and that federal rules cannot be used as a tool for censorship. Democrats and civil liberties groups objected to Carr's threats, per the Times. Sen. Elizabeth Warren called his comments "straight out of the authoritarian playbook," while Sen. Mark Kelly said a free press is critical during wartime. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, per the Washington Post, said, "When the government demands the press become a state mouthpiece under the threat of punishment, something has gone very wrong."