Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

FCC Considers Revoking CBS License Over Kamala Harris' '60 Minutes' Interview Controversy
Townhall.com ^ | 9 February A.D. 2025 | Sarah Arnold

Posted on 02/09/2025 8:48:34 PM PST by lightman

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is reportedly considering revoking CBS's broadcast license after the network aired a controversial interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris on "60 Minutes.” The interview sparked widespread outrage and calls for accountability after the network aired a misleading version, including highly distorted answers from Harris’ responses. According to a lawsuit filed by President Donald Trump, CBS violated state law by demonstrating deceptive acts in business conduct and “doctored” a "word salad" response from the failed Democrat presidential candidate about the Biden administration's involvement in the Israel-Hamas war. The FCC’s review stems from concerns that the interview may have violated broadcasting standards, prompting scrutiny over whether CBS acted in the public interest.

In the past two weeks, FCC Chair Brendan Carr launched investigations into three news outlets and reinstated complaints against three others, including NBC and ABC. The complaint against ABC received a “news distortion” complaint over its fact-checking by the moderators in the presidential debate between Harris and Trump that heavily favored Harris. Meanwhile, the complaint against NBC claimed that Harris’s appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” which aired just weeks before the election, violated “equal time” rules governing political programming.

Former FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat, dismissed any probe into the interview, saying the complaints “seek to weaponize the licensing authority of the FCC in a way that is fundamentally at odds with the First Amendment.”

However, Carr said he doesn’t “see how the FCC can reasonably adjudicate this claim of news distortion without seeing what was actually said.”

Carr's investigation could pave the way for potential revocation of broadcasting licenses for the networks. If the FCC probe uncovers any violations, the agency can impose fines or revoke a station's broadcast license entirely.

He defended his investigation into the networks during an interview with “Fox & Friends.”

“There’s a lot of people in this country right now on the radical left that are upset about this investigation into CBS and the work that I’m doing on broadcasters. And to sort of paraphrase Thomas Sowell, when the government has been weaponized in your favor, it feels like discrimination when all of a sudden there’s even-handed treatment. There’s a lot of people that have been on sort of that upper road of the two-tiered system of government,” he said.

“And what I’m here to do is apply the law evenly. This is a rare situation where we have extrinsic evidence that CBS had played one answer or one set of words and then swapped in another set. And CBS’ conduct through this, frankly, has been concerning.” Carr continued.

After releasing the full, unedited version of Harris’ “60 Minutes” interview, Trump also called for CBS to lose its broadcast license.


TOPICS: Breaking News; Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: 60minutes; cbs; djt; fafo; fakenews; fcc; kamala; maga; seebs; seebsnews; trump
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 101-110 next last
See B.S.

See B.S. ruin.

Ruin, See B.S. ruin.

1 posted on 02/09/2025 8:48:34 PM PST by lightman
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: lightman

Good bye NCIS!


2 posted on 02/09/2025 8:53:14 PM PST by Fai Mao (The US government is run by pedophiles and Perverts for pedophiles and perverts.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

DO IT!!!

LIARS GET CANCELLED!


3 posted on 02/09/2025 8:53:33 PM PST by Uncle Miltie (Nitzy: New and Improved! Now with only 66% anti-semitic posts!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

Loss of license will NEVER happen.
And they know it.
CB “Too big to failS”!
A big fat fine might, it will have to be Yuge to get their attention.
Then they may play it fair, but just until the next time D’s are in power.


4 posted on 02/09/2025 8:54:06 PM PST by Ex gun maker. (Free thinking is now a radical concept, I will not be assimilated by PC or EV group-think!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

BTTT


5 posted on 02/09/2025 8:54:23 PM PST by nopardons
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

Nothing like using their own weird standards against them. In addition to banning them, issue huge fines for violating election laws, or some such.
I don’t mind reciprocal pay back.


6 posted on 02/09/2025 8:56:11 PM PST by VanShuyten ("...that all the donkeys were dead. I know nothing as to the fate of the less valuable animals)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

“And what I’m here to do is apply the law evenly. This is a rare situation where we have extrinsic evidence that CBS had played one answer or one set of words and then swapped in another set. And CBS’ conduct through this, frankly, has been concerning.” Carr continued.

I think that See BS run, is running scared. I’ll bet attorneys at all the other networks are taking note of this. I especially hope that NPR and PBS attorney’s are paying attention.


7 posted on 02/09/2025 8:56:20 PM PST by Robert357
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

The Charter for a broadcast license from the FCC comes with certain responsibilities and one it to provide its viewers with relevant, truthful, and unbiased information. CBS has failed that responsibility and should have its charter revoked.


8 posted on 02/09/2025 8:56:34 PM PST by econjack
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman
The doctored interview was a clear cut illegal political contribution-in-kind.

The executives at CBS created a false video for her benefit.

These people need to be doing hard time.

9 posted on 02/09/2025 9:00:12 PM PST by T.B. Yoits
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

I love how these communist jackasses always hide behind the first amendment, but are more than eager to piss all over the second amendment.


10 posted on 02/09/2025 9:00:51 PM PST by RandallFlagg (Democrats should have been barred from elections since The Battle Of Athens.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: All
Meanwhile, the complaint against NBC claimed that Harris’s appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” which aired just weeks before the election, violated “equal time” rules governing political programming.

The SNL opener aired on November 2 which was just THREE DAYS before the election.

Or more precisely, before the rejection.

11 posted on 02/09/2025 9:01:15 PM PST by lightman (Beat the Philly fraud machine the Amish did onest, ja? Nein, zweimal they did already!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

Trump bumped his CBS lawsuit from $10 billion to $20 billion. Make them settle with Trump then cancel their broadcast license.


12 posted on 02/09/2025 9:02:05 PM PST by Beave Meister (Leave the gun. Take the cannoli....)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Ex gun maker.

It’s rare but it has happened - Don Burden lost his Star Stations radio licenses for a number of crimes including bribery and kickbacks:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Star_Stations

They were all market-leading top 40 stations but CBS’s television stations are a much bigger fish.


13 posted on 02/09/2025 9:04:07 PM PST by bigbob (Yes. We ARE going back!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: lightman
Former FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel, a Democrat, dismissed any probe into the interview, saying the complaints “seek to weaponize the licensing authority of the FCC in a way that is fundamentally at odds with the First Amendment.”

I'm OK with Rosenworcel sharing The Liar's Tree with Hochul and Gillibrand.

14 posted on 02/09/2025 9:05:11 PM PST by kiryandil (No one in AZ that voted for Trump voted for Gallego )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

Fake news is real.


15 posted on 02/09/2025 9:09:30 PM PST by Fester Chugabrew (Are you, or have you ever been, a Democrat?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: lightman

So, if they lose their broadcasting license, does that mean the whole network gets shut off? Or is it something less, like they lose the ability to broadcast news or something of that nature?


16 posted on 02/09/2025 9:11:32 PM PST by suasponte137
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Fai Mao

Which one?


17 posted on 02/09/2025 9:12:04 PM PST by Jonty30 (Groundhogs don't falsify their predictions for grant money, whereas climate scientists do. )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 2 | View Replies]

To: lightman

That would be the proper consequence from producing 50 years of propaganda.


18 posted on 02/09/2025 9:12:31 PM PST by Jonty30 (Groundhogs don't falsify their predictions for grant money, whereas climate scientists do. )
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Robert357

ABC I’m looking at you!


19 posted on 02/09/2025 9:12:41 PM PST by Fai Mao (The US government is run by pedophiles and Perverts for pedophiles and perverts.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 7 | View Replies]

To: bigbob

” a number of crimes including bribery and kickbacks”

We will see, but I fully expect a slap on the wrist at most.
The excuse will be along the line of, “Well, they only did it ONCE, so we are letting them off with a fine”.
Might throw in some weasel words about “Probation” too.


20 posted on 02/09/2025 9:15:09 PM PST by Ex gun maker. (Free thinking is now a radical concept, I will not be assimilated by PC or EV group-think!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021-4041-6061-80 ... 101-110 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson