Senator Richard Blumenthal Slams FCC’s ‘Unprecedented, Intrusive’ Investigations Into Paramount-Skydance, Comcast, NPR and PBS

Senator Richard Blumenthal slammed the FCC for launching “unprecedented, intrusive investigations” under “arbitrary and capricious pretenses” into the Paramount-Skydance deal, Comcast, NPR, PBS, Verizon, KCBS Radio (Audacy) and ABC, CBS and NBC affiliates on Thursday.

In a letter addressed to FCC Enforcement and Media Bureau acting chiefs Patrick Webre and Erin Boone, the Democrat senator from Connecticut blasted the agency for singling out media broadcasters that “faced the wrath of President Trump during his Presidential campaign, including actual litigation or outright threats of investigations in retaliation for perceived negative coverage.”

He noted that the “exclusive targeting to the apparent benefit of the President” is further reflected by FCC chairman Brendan Carr deciding to not renew a news distortion complaint against a Fox TV station nor launch any investigation into News Corp. around its diversity, equity and inclusion policies.

The agency’s actions under scrutiny include reinstating “news distortion” complaints against WPVI-TV over ABC’s fact-checking of Trump during a presidential debate and WCBS-TV over the editing of a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris and a complaint against WNBC-TV alleging Harris’ appearance on “Saturday Night Live” violated the agency’s equal time rule.

It also is allowing the public to weigh in on Harris’ “60 Minutes” interview video and transcript it requested as part of its investigation into WCBS-TV and as it reviews the $8 billion Skydance-Paramount merger’s required transfer of broadcast licenses.

Additionally, the agency launched investigations into Comcast and NBCUniversal and Verizon over their diversity, equity and inclusion practices, NPR and PBS for alleged violations of the agency’s underwriting rules for noncommercial broadcasters and KCBS Radio for allegedly violating public interest obligations for describing an immigration raid during one of its news broadcasts.

Blumenthal’s letter continued: “The Commission’s investigations appear predicated on dubious legal theories that deviate from the FCC’s public guidance, rules, and past enforcement actions, raising the question of whether the FCC is operating under a new set of standards. Chair Carr’s vexatious investigation of opponents of President Trump represents a threat to the First Amendment and inflicts upon newsrooms, affiliate groups, local media, nonprofit organizations, and religious broadcasters an ever-looming risk of retaliatory federal investigations for protected speech.”

In response to Carr’s actions, the Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations has opened an inquiry requesting information from the agency, including:

• Its investigatory process for complaints involving broadcast news distortion, equal time, underwriting, non-discrimination, and public interest obligations
• The parties responsible for administering, reviewing, and approving each step of the FCC’s investigatory process.
• All statutes, regulations, legal precedents, guidance, and Commission reports and memoranda related to news distortion, equal time, underwriting, non-discrimination, and public interest obligations that the FCC relies on to initiate its investigations, set aside orders and seek public comments and enforcement against a broadcaster
• All enforcement actions, warnings, briefings, interpretive rules, cases, records, advisories, letters, and any other documents from the Commission related to news distortion, equal time, underwriting, non-discrimination, and public interest obligations since Jan. 1, 2005, including the outcome of such actions.
• All statutes, rules, or guidance related to the public disclosure and handling of complaints, referrals, or investigations by the FCC, including rules and standards related to the disclosure of investigations or enforcement matters and disclosure of evidence obtained in enforcement actions.
• Copies of all precedents, guidance, memoranda, or other documents referenced in response to requests 1-4, unless readily available to the public.
• All communications regarding the reopening of the WTXF-TV complaint closed on Jan. 16, 2025, to include any deliberations or decisions that took place regarding its possible reopening.
• All complaints or investigations referred to, or opened by, the Media and Enforcement Bureaus into news distortion, equal time, underwriting, non-discrimination, and public interest obligations since Jan. 20, 2025.

The committee has set a deadline of March 26 for the information and records. Representatives for the FCC did not immediately return TheWrap’s request for comment.

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