In one of her final actions as chair of the Federal Communications Commission, Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel ordered the agency to dismiss four complaints and petitions against local stations — actions she said represented politically motivated Efforts to “restrict press freedom and undermine the First Amendment.”
"Today, I have directed the Federal Communications Commission to take a stand on behalf of the First Amendment. At a time when clarity on government interference with press freedom is needed more than ever, we are drawing a clear line in the sand." "The actions we have taken Two things were made clear. First, the FCC should not be the president’s speech police. Second, the FCC should not be the censor in chief of journalism.”
Democrat Rosenworcel will resign as FCC chairman at President-elect Donald Trump's January 20 inauguration. Trump selected Brendan Carr, the top Republican commissioner at the FCC, as the agency's new chairman, calling him a "free speech warrior" who "fights regulations that stifle American freedoms and hobble our economy." Legal fight." "
In a statement, Rosenworcel accused Trump of dismissing the complaints from the four television stations. "The incoming president is calling on the FCC to revoke the licenses of broadcast stations because he disagrees with their content and reporting," she said.
"The facts and legal circumstances of each case are different," Rosenworcel said. "But what they have in common is that they seek to weaponize the FCC's licensing authority in a way that is fundamentally inconsistent with the First Amendment. Doing so would set a dangerous precedent. That's why we're here to reject it."
Here are three complaints and one petition that the FCC dismissed:
- The conservative Center for American Rights filed a complaint against ABC-owned Philadelphia's WPVI-TV on September 24, 2024, alleging that the September 10 presidential debate between Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris lacked objective balance and showed favoritism . In a letter to the American Rights Center, the FCC's Enforcement Bureau denied the complaint, noting that the First Amendment limits the agency from penalizing stations for the general grievances raised in the filing, which would require interference in the news The principle of freedom.
- The Center for American Rights filed a complaint against New York's CBS affiliate WCBS on October 16, 2024, accusing the network of "grossly and intentionally misrepresenting" Harris' interviews on "Face the Nation" and "60 Minutes" News," had "two conflicting responses" and asked CBS to release an unedited transcript of Harris' interview. In a letter to the Center for American Rights, the DEA denied the complaint. and noted that the First Amendment limits the agency's ability to interfere with press freedom decisions.
- The American Rights Center filed a lawsuit against NBC's WNBC in New York on November 4, 2024, accusing the network of failing to comply with the FCC's "equal time" rules when it aired Harris' show "Saturday Night Live." The FCC Media Bureau denied the complaint in an order saying the network complied with rules by providing then-candidate Trump with a 60-second message that was featured on NASCAR shows and the NFL's "Sunday Night Football" "Broadcast during the period. " game.
- The Media & Democracy Project filed a petition on July 3, 2023 to revoke Fox-owned WTXF-TV’s Philadelphia broadcast license, claiming that the station’s parent company, Rupert Murdoch’s Fox, lacked The “character” that you should have. A public radio station licensee cited Dominion Voting Systems in a defamation lawsuit filed against Fox News over comments it made during the 2020 presidential election. (In 2023, Fox News agreed to pay $787.5 million to resolve a lawsuit from Dominion, which repeatedly accused Fox News of knowingly making false statements about the voting company's conduct and impact on the 2020 U.S. presidential election.) In an order, The FCC Media Bureau rejected the petition because the requested "character evaluation" contradicts the First Amendment and ongoing freedom of the press.
"In an age where many of us are looking for the information we want anytime, anywhere, on any convenient screen, it seems odd to draw attention to broadcast licenses like this," Rosenworcel said. "But these stations remain important sources of local and national news. There is nothing outdated about the idea that the FCC has an obligation to respect the Constitution."