FCC chair threatens to throttle news broadcasts over ‘hoaxes’ about Iran war | Trump administration
The Trump administration’s communications licensing czar fired a warning shot at the US broadcast industry on Saturday, using what he called “hype and news distortions” to threaten to revoke broadcasters’ spectrum permits.
Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Brendan Carr said on social media that “broadcasters who publish fake news have a chance to correct course before license renewals come due. The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and if they fail to do so, they will lose their licenses.”
The FCC has control over the electromagnetic spectrum, colloquially called the airwaves, including “commercial and noncommercial fixed and mobile wireless services, television and radio broadcasting, satellite and other services” under the Communications Act of 1934.
Carr’s warning comes at a time when Trump and members of his administration have sustained complaints about the media’s treatment of what he derisively calls the “mainstream media” for derogatory or unpatriotic coverage of the conflict in Iran.
In his post, Carr copied Trump’s Truth Social post in which he complained about “misleading” reporting on Iran.
“Again, an intentionally misleading headline has been made by the Fake News Media regarding five tanker planes allegedly shot down at an airport in Saudi Arabia, and it is no longer helpful,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Saturday.
Trump singled out the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal, saying that they “and other Lowlife ‘Newspapers’ and the Media actually want us to lose the War,” calling the outlets’ reporting “the exact opposite of the actual facts!” He described it as.
“They are truly sick and crazy people who don’t realize the damage they are doing to the United States,” he added.
Trump’s comments came after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth criticized the media’s coverage of the conflict, accusing him of being poor in media portrayals and trying to restrict authorized reporters at the Pentagon.
On Friday, Hegseth offered a lengthy review of what he called “fake news” regarding reporting on U.S.-Israeli action in Iran.
“Some of this team, some of the press, can’t stop. Let me make a few suggestions. When people look at television, they see banners and headlines. I was also involved in this. And I know everything was written deliberately,” he said.
Hegseth noted headlines that read “Middle East war intensifies,” alongside images of civilian or energy targets hit by Iran.
“How about ‘Iran is getting more and more desperate’?” he said.
Hegseth then referenced the acquisition of CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, by Paramount Skydance, owned by multibillionaire Larry Ellison and his son David Ellison. “The sooner David Ellison takes over this network, the better,” Hegseth said.
In his first interview as Paramount CEO last week, Ellison pledged to support editorial independence at CNN; where staff expressed concerns about the change in ownership and potential impacts on editorial stance.
“CNN is an incredible brand with an incredible team, and we absolutely believe in the independence that needs to be preserved for these incredible journalists and want to support its advancement,” Ellison said.
In his post on Saturday, Carr said without evidence that this was in the news industry’s own business interests because trust in legacy media had fallen to an all-time low of 9% and was a ratings disaster.
He stated that he could use access to the broadcast and communications spectrum, which is considered public domain, to fix the problem and lead to another possible conflict between the government and the media.
“The American people have provided billions of dollars in financial support to broadcasters by providing free access to the nation’s airwaves,” Carr wrote. “It is very important to restore trust in the media that has earned the label of fake news.”
Carr also raised archival complaints about media coverage of the 2024 election; This news widely predicted a Democratic presidential victory, even though Republican candidate Trump actually won the popular vote majority.
“When a political candidate can win a landslide election victory in the face of deceptions and distortions, there is something very wrong,” Carr said. “This means that the public has lost faith and trust in the media.”
