Several politicians and media figures have criticized Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman Brendan Carr for issuing a statement on Saturday in which he attacked the media over its coverage of the Iran War and threatened to pull licenses if they do not “operate in the public interest.”
Carr, in a lengthy post on X, accused broadcasters of “running hoaxes and news distortions” and warned they must “correct course before their license renewals come up.”
“It is very important to bring trust back into media, which has earned itself the label of fake news,” he wrote. “Time for change!”
Why It Matters
Carr’s post follows President Donald Trump’s criticism of American news media earlier on Saturday, in which he accused news organizations of publishing “intentionally misleading” headlines about the war.
The president has struggled with messaging about the conflict, which has continued for two weeks and appears to have no clear end in sight, even as the president insists the U.S. has “beaten and completely decimated Iran, both militarily, economically, and in every other way.”
Iran effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, through which some 20 percent of the global oil supply transits, to which the U.S. responded by bombing military facilities on Kharg Island, where Iran processes roughly 90 percent of its crude oil before shipping it.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Friday also criticized coverage of the war, specifically taking aim at CNN for reporting the administration had underestimated the impact of Iran closing the strait. He also cheered the fact that the network might soon belong to Trump ally and current owner of CBS News David Ellison.
“Patently ridiculous, of course,” Hegseth said. “For decades, Iran has threatened shipping in the Strait of Hormuz – this is always what they do: Hold the strait hostage.”
Politicians Accuse Carr of Censorship, Constitutional Violations
Carr’s post included several claims about the state of traditional American media, including an allegation that “trust in legacy media has now fallen to an all time low of just 9%” and “American people have subsidized broadcasters to the tune of billions of dollars.”
The post prompted several prominent politicians and media figures to hit back at the accusations, including Carr’s claim that “when a political candidate is able to win a landslide election victory after in the face of hoaxes and distortions, there is something very wrong.”
California Governor Gavin Newsom, who leads polling alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris as the potential Democratic presidential nominee for 2028, accused Carr of issuing a “flagrantly unconstitutional” threat to American media.
“If Trump doesn’t like your coverage of the war, his FCC will pull your broadcast license,” Newsom wrote.
Representative Ted Lieu of California, a Democrat, wrote on X that Carr could “take your fascist s*** and shove it.”
“If you implement your flagrantly anti First Amendment actions, you will be sued and you will lose,” Lieu wrote. “And legal discovery will be awesome. Because the American people can then find out what the Administration keeps hiding.”
Senator Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, a Democrat, labeled Carr’s statement a “threat” that is “straight out of the authoritarian playbook,” adding “it’s illegal for the government to censor free speech it just doesn’t like about Trump’s Iran war.”
Representative Greg Stanton of Arizona, a Democrat and former mayor of Phoenix, accused Carr of “threatening government censorship,” writing that “a free press isn’t a privilege; it’s a constitutional right.”
“We’ve already seen Carr try to intimidate late-night hosts and commentators,” Stanton wrote. “But trying to hide the realities of war from the people is far more sinister & dangerous.”
Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii, a Democrat, on X wrote Carr had issued “a clear directive to provide positive war coverage or else licenses may not be renewed.”
“This is worse than the comedian stuff, and by a lot,” he wrote. “The stakes here are much higher. He’s not talking about late night shows, he’s talking about how a war is covered.”
Media Figures Hit Back at Carr
Several media figures also responded to Carr’s comments, using more forceful and direct criticism than their political counterparts.
Keith Olbermann, formerly a weeknight political host on MSNBC who now hosts a daily podcast called Countdown with Keith Olbermann, told Carr in the comments under his post: “Go f*** yourself and the fascists you’ve prostituted yourself for, baldy.”
In a separate X post, Olbermann reiterated his instructions to Carr, adding, “When your idiot boss has to beg China for help to get us out of the hole he’s dug for us at Hormuz, all the censorship you can effect isn’t going to change reality.”
“You are going down with the Trump Titanic, Baldy,” he wrote.
Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican congressman and current CNN political commentator, wrote on X that from his time in energy and commerce committee, he knew Carr to have “absolutely drank fascist juice since those days,” calling the threat “unacceptable and unamerican.”
He also replied directly to Carr’s post, telling him “you could just GFY in the face instead. This is America.”
Mehdi Hasan, a progressive commentator and journalist, quoted Carr’s post and wrote a more level-headed response on X: “Brendan, Trump didn’t win a ‘landslide’ victory in 2024. You yourself are pushing ‘fake news’ here.”
