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WPCNR THE LETTER TICKER. MARCH 6, 2024
Hey – I know there’s a ton going on but I wanted to flag this story about the upcoming deadline for comments on the FCC’s news distortion investigation.
A group of civil society organizations, including Fight for the Future, Freedom of the Press Foundation, Demand Progress, and Common Cause, has been calling on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to prioritize free expression and media freedom over censorship in response to the agency’s news distortion investigation. Through NoFCCSpeechPolice.org, this group has mobilized almost 10,000 public comments.
The context: In February 2025, Trump’s FCC Chair, Brendan Carr, reopened an investigation into a news distortion complaint regarding CBS’ “60 Minutes” interview with then Vice President Kamala Harris. This followed accusations from the Trump campaign in October 2024 that CBS deliberately manipulated the interview to favor Harris. Alongside reopening this investigation, Carr has launched investigations into other media outlets: PBS, NPR, NBC, and ABC. These moves raise serious concerns about government overreach, censorship of free speech and the erosion of media freedom under this administration.
The FCC is supposed to be an independent, nonpartisan agency with a mandate to protect the public interest when it comes to media and Internet policy, not to be used as a political tool. It is disconcerting to see the FCC being weaponized against political opponents and media outlets President Trump doesn’t like.
“This proceeding sets a dangerous precedent for government interference with media freedom. It is a slippery slope that only leads to censorship, suppression of dissent, and the erosion of First Amendment rights. We should all be deeply concerned about this and take action to oppose it. Now more than ever, it is important that we stand together to defend the right to free expression and say no to the government policing speech and journalism. This is about more than just media regulation—it’s about safeguarding our democracy. A free and fair media that serves the public interest is crucial to that.” said Eseohe Ojo, Campaigner at Fight for the Future.
To this end, Fight for the Future has created a user-friendly tool to make it easy for individuals to take action and submit comments to the FCC before the March 7 deadline. We are urging the public to use NoFCCSpeechPolice.org to take action and make their voices heard.
Thanks,
Eseohe Ojo (she/her)
Campaigner, Fight for the Future