Cnn
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Brendan Carr, the first communications regulator, does not consider his investigation into CBS as “a threat” for the diffuser.
Sitting with the host of CNBC Sara Eisen at the World Conference of the Milken Institute in Los Angeles on Monday, Carr called the federal investigation on “60 minutes” during his October interview with the president of the time, Kamala Harris, a “penalty which is in the law on communications”. The Federal Communications Commission is investigating whether the program is committed to the so-called “news distortion”.
Carr pointed out that confidence in the media is a historic hollow, imposing the blame not on local television channels, whose licenses are set by the FCC, but rather at the foot of the greatest broadcasters.
“What we have seen is that you have national media – ABC, NBC, CBS – and they are doing more and more control over these local television channels,” said Carr. “I don’t think it’s a good thing for the country, so we try to reverse this.”
Clarification of Carr according to which threats are in fact supposedly penalties under the law on communications follows months of posture and attacks against the media inherited from the White House and the FCC. Those The attacks were largely directed by President Donald Trump. Even before his re -election, Trump repeatedly pushed the CBS license to revoke. And the president is currently seeking to build a regulation of his trial with the broadcaster. Since 2022, Trump has asked that each major network of new American television is punished.
CBS is not the only national diffuser accused of distortion of news. In April, Carr went to X to accuse NBC of having “deceived the American public” by allegedly stylizing Kilmar Armando Abrego as an ordinary “Maryland Man”.
“Comcast knows that federal law requires that its license operations serve public interest,” said Carr in his post. “The distortion of the news does not cut it.”
When he was pressed on NBC allegations on Monday, Carr said that local stations had told him that they wanted “more freedom to cover the problems that matter in their local communities” and that so-called sanctions aim to provide local stations with such freedoms.
“But, the relations they have with the national programmers (have) been really forced, so this is a problem we are examining,” said Carr.
Despite the accusation of the greatest broadcasters of “controlling as much of what is happening on the air”, the president of the FCC did not explain how the traction licenses would benefit local stations.
Under the affiliation agreements, local television stations are authorized to program a network. Although the national networks are not under license, the FCC undergoes licenses of eight stations. It has been decades that the FCC has not obtained a license – and “that is part of the problem,” said Carr.
The complaint against CBS, filed by a pro-Trump group which presumed News distortion, was initially thrown alongside distinct complaints against NBC, CBS and Fox News of the president of the time, Jessica Rosenworcel, in January before her resignation. Within a week later, Carr restored all complaints, except that against Fox News, in less than two days after Trump’s return to the Oval Office
Meanwhile, the FCC is also investigating the merger waiting for the parent of CBS Paramount with Skydance Media. Carr pointed out on Monday that the investigation into the chairman’s license and trial in “60 minutes” are distinct from the merger investigation – comments that reflect Carr’s recent attitude towards the agreement and mark a departure from its previous position.
