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“President Trump is fundamentally reshaping the media landscape,” FCC Chair Brendan Carr told CNBC Friday. “The media industry across this country needs a course correction.”On Thursday, the FCC voted 2-1 to approve the $8.4 billion merger between CBS parent Paramount Global (PARA.O), opens new tab and Skydance Media after Skydance agreed to ensure CBS news and entertainment programming is free of bias, hire an ombudsman for at least two years to review complaints and end diversity programs.Trump has repeatedly attacked broadcast networks for what he perceives as unbiased news coverage and called on Carr to rescind their licenses.“The new owners of CBS came in and said, ‘It’s time for a change. We’re going to reorient it towards getting rid of bias,” Carr said. “At the end of the day that’s what made the difference for us.”Carr’s comments suggest the FCC will ramp up efforts to rid mainstream media of what he and President Trump consider a deep and enduring liberal bias, creating an opening for more conservative views among the biggest media companies.The FCC regulates broadcast media outlets, which use the public airways and are required to act in the public interest. Carr has cited the public interest standard in seeking the changes at CBS.Democratic FCC Commission Anna Gomez accused Paramount of “cowardly capitulation” to the Trump administration. She also said the FCC was imposing “never-before-seen controls over newsroom decisions and editorial judgment, in direct violation of the First Amendment and the law.”Earlier this month, Paramount agreed to pay $16 million to settle a $20 billion lawsuit filed by Trump, claiming CBS News’ “60 Minutes” deceptively edited an interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Paramount did not admit wrongdoing.Some Democrats have called the payment a bribe and vowed to investigate. “Trump demands allegiance from everyone around him and it’s disgusting to see companies like Skydance and Paramount bowing to his endless and illegal demands,” Representative Frank Pallone said.Soon after being designated chair by Trump in January, Carr reinstated a “60 Minutes” complaint, as well as complaints about how Walt Disney’s (DIS.N), opens new tab ABC News moderated the pre-election televised debate between then-President Joe Biden and Trump and Comcast’s (CMCSA.O), opens new tab NBC for allowing Harris to appear on “Saturday Night Live” shortly before the election.Disney and Comcast did not immediately comment Friday.Carr told Reuters Thursday the FCC is not closing its investigation into the “60 Minutes” interview.The FCC has required companies like T-Mobile (TMUS.O), opens new tab and Verizon (VZ.N), opens new tab to end diversity programs before approving deals. Carr in February told Comcast he was opening a probe into its diversity efforts.Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Edward Tobin
Trump, FCC want to reshape the media landscape starting with CBS
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POTUS’s people say a lot of stuff. Doesn’t mean all of it’s going to happen; so much of it hasn’t, even as other stuff does, and we miss that, looking at whatever they’re going on about. Anyway, his people are trying to be intimidating. I hope more people stand up, rather than capitulating, but I guess we’ll see.
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Hi Ali. I agree with you that the tRump admin and people do and say anything to change the narrative to what they want. tRump said they had a trade deal with Japan turned out not to be true, and so on so on. But it is not the people ailing to stand up, it is the media. The people are trying. Remember the ICE protests that are still ongoing. The people that need to be standing up are the members of congress that I just watched side step the questions to turn to a different topic. I hope to post it in the morning. Chuck Schumer is useless in this time because he doesn’t want to offend his corporate backers, and that means AIPAC, the Israel lobby in the United States comprises individuals and groups who seek to influence the U.S. federal government to better serve the interests of Israel. Notice not the interests of the US, but of Israel. They are funded heavily by Israel and work against the US interests. Bibi himself has bragged on this.
Plus rather than the Democratic Party backing the record vote winning Zohran Mamdani the party is running from him. Why because he got a record number of under 30 votes. Hakeem Jeffries said that he was afraid they couldn’t fund-raise for the midterms if he won. What does that tell you? First he refused to endorse him because he is Muslim and the Jewish lobby group is the largest donator to Hakeem Jeffries campaign coffers. If the democrats ever want to win again they need to go back to their roots of caring about the people and stop sucking off the corporate teat. Hugs
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By people, I meant entities including our potus-puppy-press, other media, and colleges, too. That was the context in which I wrote the other day.
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