FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr has invoked the “public interest” standard to threaten broadcasters who air political commentary he dislikes—most recently Jimmy Kimmel’s remarks about Charlie Kirk. But as Joe Kane argues in City Journal, Carr’s approach misrepresents the law and endangers free speech.
Kane explains that while the FCC regulates broadcasters’ technical operations, it cannot use license renewals to punish political expression. The Supreme Court has repeatedly limited the “public interest” standard, and any attempt to weaponize it for partisan ends would violate both the Communications Act and the First Amendment.
Carr’s threats, Kane warns, reflect a broader misunderstanding of the FCC’s authority. Congress never gave the Commission power to police speech—and doing so would set a dangerous precedent for government censorship of political discourse.
Read the full commentary in City Journal.
