Over the weekend, President-elect Donald Trump nominated Brendan Carr as the next chair of the Federal Communications Commission. Trump first placed Carr on the FCC during his first term, in 2017.
Per the FCC’s website, the senior Republican on the commission has been nominated by both Trump and President Biden, confirmed unanimously by the Senate three times.
In his nominating statement on Sunday, Trump said, “Commissioner Carr is a warrior for free speech, and has fought against the regulatory lawfare that has stifled Americans’ freedoms, and held back our economy. He will end the regulatory onslaught that has been crippling America’s job creators and innovators and ensure that the FCC delivers for rural America.”
Since Trump’s announcement, several prominent organizations in the broadcast industry have released statements congratulating the commissioner.
In his own statement, National Association of Broadcasters President and CEO Curtis LeGeyt said Carr has been “a steadfast leader in holding Big Tech accountable and supporting policies that will allow local broadcast stations to better compete with these behemoths and thrive.”
“We are excited to continue our work with the chairman-designate to level the playing field and remove regulatory barriers that impede investment in local broadcast newsrooms,” wrote LeGeyt. “Together we will ensure local television and radio stations can innovate and continue to serve communities across the country.”
NATE: The Communications Infrastructure Contractors Association also released a statement from its president and CEO Todd Schlekeway, shared in part below:
“Brendan is a champion for the tower technicians and contractor companies who do the tough, gritty work to enable connectivity in the United States. During his tenure serving as an FCC commissioner, Brendan has invested a great amount of time and energy visiting NATE member companies on the front lines of deployment, including personally climbing many towers with America’s finest tower techs from around the country.”
Not everyone, however, was as complimentary in their comments. Craig Aaron, co-CEO of advocacy group Free Press, warned that Carr’s nomination will endanger free speech and the FCC’s charter of promoting public discourse.
“While styling himself as a free-speech champion, Carr refused to stand up when Trump threatened to take away the broadcast licenses of TV stations for daring to fact check him during the campaign. This alone should be disqualifying,” wrote Aaron. “The public needs a watchdog looking out for them at this independent agency, not an attack dog for Trump and [Elon] Musk.”
Over the summer, when a proposal to regulate the use of artificial intelligence in political ads — penned by sitting Democratic FCC Chairwoman Jessica Rosenworcel — was circulating, Carr said the majority’s attempt to fundamentally alter the regulation of political speech just a short time before a national election is as misguided as it is unlawful.
[Related: “Radio Broadcasters Voice Dislike for FCC Proposal on AI Disclosure“]
Now, with the Nov. 5 election in the rearview mirror, Carr said the FCC should stop work on controversial issues until after Donald Trump returns to the White House in January.
Last week, the Senate selected John Thune, the Republican senator from South Dakota, as its majority leader, replacing Sen. Mitch McConnell. A few days later, Republicans also clinched the House majority, winning 218 seats to Democrats’ 212. This news confirms what some media outlets have referred to as a Trump “trifecta,” as the president-elect gears up to start his second term.
