Donald Trump’s pick to lead the Federal Communications Commission has condemned Saturday Night Live for its starring Kamala Harris and warned TV networks to be careful of “bias.”
Brendan Carr, the top Republican on the independent commission that oversees radio, television, wire, satellite and cable in the US, has also often targeted Big Tech, accusing them of censorship.
Trump called his pick a “fighter for freedom of speech.” Carr has embraced Trump’s positions on social media, technology and television companies.
“Commissioner Carr is a fighter for free speech and has fought against regulations that have suppressed American freedoms and held back our economy,” Trump said in a statement.
“He will end the regulatory onslaught that has crippled America’s job creators and innovators and ensure the FCC delivers results for rural America.”
Trump originally nominated Carr to the FCC in 2017, during his first term.
Brendan Carr was originally nominated by Trump to the FCC in 2017
Carr made headlines two days before the election when he claimed that Harris’ appearance on Saturday Night Live violated the “equal time” rule.
“This has every appearance of, at least some leadership at NBC, at SNL, making it clear that they wanted to weigh in favor of one candidate before the election,” Carr said at the time.
“NBC has structured this in a way that is clearly intended to circumvent the FCC’s rules,” Carr said. “We’re talking 50 hours before Election Day starts, without any notice to other candidates, as far as I know.”
Carr has also backed Trump’s call to strip the licenses of all three major broadcast networks for coverage choices he has denounced.
NBC later informed the FCC that Harris had appeared on SNL “without charge” for one minute and thirty seconds. This ensured that other campaigns could request time from the network.
On that Sunday, NBC gave the Trump campaign time during its NASCAR and Sunday Night Football coverage in response to Harris’ SNL appearance.
Broadcast networks are not licensed by the federal government. Individual stations are. But the three major networks – NBC, ABC and CBS – own 80 stations among them. Each station is a profit center and a pressure point for the networks.
Carr could dramatically overhaul the independent agency, expand its mandate and use it as a political weapon for the right, analysts said. The New York Times.
They predicted that Carr would test the legal limits of the agency’s power by overseeing companies like Meta and Google, setting up a fierce battle with Silicon Valley.
Carr also wrote the FCC portion of Project 2025, the agenda the conservative Heritage Foundation outlined for a second Trump term.
In it, Carr argued that the agency should also oversee the largest technology companies, such as Apple, Meta, Google and Microsoft.
Trump disavowed Project 2025 during the campaign.
Donald Trump has criticized broadcast networks and social media
David Carr on the first day of the Republican National Convention in July
Earlier this month, Carr attacked Apple, Facebook, Google and Microsoft in a post on Billionaire Elon Musk – owner of
Carr has supported federal legislation that would punish social media companies that block or suspend users for their “viewpoints,” a charge Musk and other conservatives have leveled against the tech giants.
Carr also supported a bill passed by Congress to ban TikTok.
He graduated from Georgetown University and received his law degree from the Catholic University of America.
He joined the FCC as a staff member in 2012. After serving as the agency’s general counsel, he was nominated by Trump to be commissioner — and was nominated again by President Joe Biden.
The FCC has five members and regulates the telecommunications industry.