Politics

House Democrats Pressure Tv Broadcasters To Deplatform Conservative Networks

Report

Two House Democrats sent letters Monday to a dozen television broadcasters suggesting that they stop airing Fox News, Newsmax, and One America News Network, a move which a Republican commissioner on the FCC called a “chilling transgression” aimed at deplatforming the conservative networks.

“Are you planning to continue carrying Fox News, OANN, and Newsmax on your platform both now and beyond the renewal date?” California Reps. Anna G. Eshoo and Jerry McNerney wrote in a letter to the companies.

The letters were sent to AT&T, Verizon, Roku, Amazon, Apple, Comcast, Charter, Dish, Cox, Altice, Alphabet, and Hulu.

Eshoo and McNerney asked the companies what steps they took after the 2020 presidential election “to monitor, respond to, and reduce the spread of disinformation, including encouragement or incitement of violence by channels your company disseminates to millions of Americans?”

The lawmakers blamed the three conservative outlets for spreading disinformation about voter fraud that led to the attack on the U. S. Capitol building on Jan. 6.

They asserted that the cable and streaming companies “have done nothing in response to the misinformation aired by these outlets.”

Brendan Carr, a Trump-appointed commissioner on the Federal Communications Commission, called the letter a “chilling transgression” against the networks aimed at stifling editorial decisions and political speech.

“I call on my FCC colleagues to join me in publicly denouncing this attempt to stifle political speech and independent news judgment,” Carr said in a statement on Twitter.

“The Democrats are sending a message that is as clear as it is troubling — these regulated entities will pay a price if the targeted newsrooms do not conform to Democrats’ preferred political narratives.”

What time does the Democrats’ book burning party start ? https://t.co/OcI6sXxYcd pic.twitter.com/8ef5rUFX4h