A Runaway Carr

Pressed by Status over text message, FCC boss Brendan Carr defended his actions—including his decision not to go after Rupert Murdoch's Fox.

Author

Oliver Darcy
February 12, 2025

Brendan Carr. (Photo by Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images)

On Tuesday evening, as I was putting the finishing touches on the previous edition of this newsletter, news broke that Brendan Carr, Donald Trump’s handpicked Federal Communications Commission chairman, had launched yet another investigation into a media company. Carr had already revived petitions filed by pro-MAGA forces against ABC, NBC, and CBS. He had also announced a string of investigations targeting NPR, PBS, and the Soros-backed Audacy. Now, he had written to Comcast boss Brian Roberts, informing him that the FCC would be investigating whether the company—which owns NBC—had violated the law because of its D.E.I. initiatives.

Carr has been aggressive in pursuing media companies with news divisions that have scrutinized Trump, but, as we have pointed out, he has conspicuously given Rupert Murdoch’s Fox Corporation a pass. The pattern of enforcement has made his motivations seem clear: Carr is intent on using his government authority to go after media organizations that have challenged Trump while shielding those that support him.

When Carr resurrected petitions filed against ABC, NBC, and CBS, he declined to revive a petition that former Murdoch lieutenant Preston Padden had filed against Fox. The four petitions had been dismissed by Carr’s predecessor in the final days of the Biden administration—until Carr’s recent move to reinstate the non-Fox cases. Padden and others had argued that Murdoch, by allowing Fox News to spread 2020 election falsehoods, was unfit to hold a broadcast license under the FCC’s character requirements.

Earlier this month, I asked the FCC why Carr had so obviously exempted Murdoch amid the agency’s flurry of activity. The FCC never responded. I also texted Carr, but heard nothing back. Then, on Tuesday, after watching Carr open yet another probe into a media company that wasn’t Fox, I followed up with him directly. “Hey Brendan, just following up on this, given you seem to be launching probes into every other company but [you're] curiously not interested in the Fox situation?”

To my surprise, a few moments later, Carr replied. And for the next hour or so, we traded text messages.

Carr insisted there was “a clear factual difference” between the Fox petition and the ones he had revived. “With respect to the three, the petitioners raised issues regarding broadcast TV stations,” he told me. “In contrast, the Fox one involved claims that flowed from content on Fox News’ cable channel. FCC rules treat those situations differently.” He also claimed that his letter to Comcast was just the beginning and that under his leadership, the FCC “will be ensuring that no regulated entity violates our civil rights / EEO laws.” (Good thing Fox Corporation scrubbed its pro-D.E.I. language last month after we asked them about it! You’re welcome, Rupert.)

Technically, Carr is right—the FCC regulates broadcast networks, not cable channels—but he was missing the larger point. The Fox station in question is owned by the same media mogul who permitted election lies to be broadcast on his cable network. “Doesn’t that get to character and fitness to operate a public station?” I asked.

Carr pushed back: “Your view is that the FCC has authority to revoke (or not renew) a broadcast TV license if a cable channel with common ownership said something that the FCC considers untrue?”

I conceded that I’m not an FCC or legal expert, but my understanding of the character clause is that it can apply to both FCC-regulated and non-FCC-regulated conduct. I brought this up with Carr, but he didn't seem moved. Naturally, when I reached out to Padden on Wednesday, he disagreed with Carr. He “is simply wrong on the law,” Padden told me.

“In my opinion, it is plain as day that Carr is ignoring the Fox petition because those are his orders from Trump,” Padden added, saying that “there are many cases” that support his interpretation of the character clause.

Indeed, it would be rather strange if the FCC’s character requirement prevented it from considering non-FCC-regulated behavior. That would be like a university ignoring a history of academic dishonesty just because the cheating happened at another school. Integrity isn’t confined to a single setting—it reflects a person’s overall character.

That’s the argument that Al Sikes, the former Republican FCC chair appointed by George H.W. Bush, made to me by phone Wednesday afternoon. "I don't think character can be disassembled," Sikes told me. "You cannot separate character. Character is character, whether it is done at a broadcast station or a cable channel."

Carr eventually went dark on me Tuesday, likely because he didn’t really want to engage in a debate on this matter. After all, his mind appeared quite made up. But before going silent, he said he was “happy to look” at precedent and ensure it was “applied in an even-handed manner.” We’ll see. Maybe he’ll shock the world and take action against Murdoch. But that doesn’t seem like a wise bet.

Sikes, who supported Padden’s petition against Fox’s license renewal, told me he believes Carr is operating “more with motivation than with the law.” He said he had never before been willing to publicly criticize a successor, but that he felt compelled to speak out, given the stakes.

“The First Amendment is foundational,” Sikes said. “It should be foundational not just in the Constitution, but in the way the FCC acts.”

I asked if he believed Carr’s actions were at odds with the First Amendment. He responded in the affirmative.

The Fourth Estate

The ABC News logo seen at the network's presidential debate. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Status Scoop | ABC's New Vacancy: One of ABC News’ top editorial roles is suddenly vacant. Joshua Hoyos, the network’s New York bureau chief, has exited the Disney-owned company following an HR investigation into his behavior, I’m told. The specifics of the probe remain unclear, but Hoyos was suspended before the two parties formally severed ties this week, I’m told. He had spent more than a decade with the network. Network chief Almin Karamehmedovic is expected to tell staff about the matter later this week. A spokesperson for ABC News declined to comment on personnel matters, and Hoyos did not respond to a request for comment.

► Speaking of Karamehmedovic: I’m told the ABC News chief has joined his boss, Debra OConnell, in Los Angeles. Earlier in the week, Karamehmedovic told staffers that OConnell is presenting to Burbank long term plans for ABC News.

Status Scoop | Making Sense of Musk’s Mayhem: The New York Times is shaking up its “On Politics” newsletter, which usually focuses on campaigns. Instead of covering a new topic each edition, it’s zeroing in on one blockbuster story: Elon Musk’s chaotic blitz on the federal government. The goal? To break down in clear terms what’s happening in Washington and why it matters. Deputy managing editor Sam Dolnick put it like this to me: “Musk’s blitz on the federal government is moving so quickly and has such giant implications that we felt a newsletter that captures all the various strands would help readers track this singular moment.” In other words, Musk is moving so fast that The NYT is hitting pause to digest it all.

MEDIA MOVES

  • MSNBC officially named Rebecca Kutler as president of the network. As we first reported last month, she very likely had the job when Mark Lazarus named her "interim" chief. [Variety]

  • POLITICO hired Kyle Blaine from CNN to be executive producer for Playbook. [POLITICO]

  • The NYT tapped Kirsten Davis as investigations editor and hired Laurel Rosenhall as a national correspondent covering California politics. [NYT/NYT]

  • Tax Notes hired Katie Lobosco to cover tax policy. [TBN]

The Information Wars

Blocked and Loaded: The Associated Press is putting the Trump White House on notice. Executive Editor Julie Pace on Wednesday said the administration is violating the law by blocking its reporters from official events in retaliation for the wire service refusing to call the Gulf of Mexico the "Gulf of America." In a letter, Pace wrote that the action is "a clear violation of the First Amendment" and that the AP will "vigorously defend its Constitutional rights." Translation: Legal action will likely be taken unless the Trump White House reverses course, which seems unlikely.

► Related: Karoline Leavitt, under questioning from CNN's Kaitlan Collins, was unable or unwilling on Wednesday to say specifically which White House official made the decision to prohibit the AP from events.

COMBAT ZONE

  • A three-judge panel on a Florida appeals court on Wednesday paved the way for Trump's lawsuit against the Pulitzer Prize board to continue. [Tampa Bay]

  • 👀 The Fox News host turned Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth again blasted former colleague Jennifer Griffin on X, taking aim at her reporting.

  • Right-wing extremist Laura Loomer said Donald Trump called her about Panama and ultimately "took my advice." [MMFA]

  • Shonda Rhimes resigned from the Kennedy Center board after Trump's takeover. [LAT]

  • X settled a lawsuit with Trump for $10 million, Annie Linskey and Rebecca Ballhaus reported. Trump brought the suit against the company, then known as Twitter, after the January 6 insurrection, prior to Elon Musk's ownership. [WSJ]

  • Scarlett Johansson sounded the alarm on an A.I.-generated video of celebrities supposedly speaking out against Kanye West's anti-semitism: "We must call out the misuse of A.I., no matter its messaging." [Variety]

Masters of the Universe

The Reddit logo. (Status illustration/Reddit)

Reddit in the Red: Shares in Reddit collapsed 13% in after-hours trading Wednesday to $187 a share after reporting quarterly earnings. The company beat estimates on earnings and revenue, but reported weaker-than-expected growth as a result of "votality" triggered by a Google algorithm change. "This one was particularly interesting because there really was a swing down, but then a recovery shortly thereafter happened right at the end of the quarter," Reddit boss Steve Huffman said. The Street had expected 103.1 million daily active users, but Reddit reported 101.7 million—prompting investors to downvote the stock.

TECH TABS

  • 📈 How long will it continue? Meta saw its stock rise for an 18th consecutive day.

  • A pair of Bluesky users sued the NFL for not letting teams create accounts on the social media platform. [Front Office Sports]

  • OpenAI said it will offer free ChatGPT users unlimited access to GPT-5. [The Verge]

The Biz

Streaming Showdown: YouTube TV on Wednesday evening started to inform subscribers that they are at risk of losing access to Paramount Global's network of channels over a contract dispute. The Shari Redstone media conglomerate has been unable to strike a deal with YouTube. That means channels ranging from CBS to MTV to BET to Comedy Central could soon go dark on the provider Thursday.

THE LEDGER

  • 🤑 Murdoch Money: Fox Corporation pocketed $800 million in Super Bowl advertising revenue. [Deadline]

    • Speaking of which, Fox TV Stations chief Jack Abernethy issued an internal memo saying that the company regrets airing Kanye West’s ads in certain markets, per The WaPo’s Jeremy Barr, who posted about the development on X. “We strongly condemn any form of antisemitism,” Abernethy wrote.

  • Simon & Schuster said it will publish a memoir by John Malone—which should be interesting, to say the least! [Deadline]

The Closing Number

"Captain America: Brave New World." (Courtesy of Marvel)

Not So Marvel-ous: Uh oh. The much-anticipated "Captain America: Brave New World," which has been marketed more like an A24 film than a typical Marvel movie, looks to be in trouble. The embargo for reviews was lifted on Wednesday and, with 117 posted, the film is boasting a horrendous 51% Rotten Tomatoes score. The question now: Will fans feel the same way? And will these abysmal reviews have an impact on its box office performance? This is one of—if not the- most high-profile movies set to be released this year.

FINAL BOW

  • Hulu teased the sixth and final season of "The Handmaid's Tale," which it said will premiere April 8. [YouTube]

  • HBO drama chief Francesca Orsi said "House of the Dragon" season three will start "with an exciting battle." [Deadline]

  • John Lithgow is set to play Dumbledore in HBO's forthcoming "Harry Potter" series. [Deadline]

  • Jeremy Strong will star in Netflix's "Boys From Brazil." [THR]

  • Disney's "Mufasa" has a digital release date: February 18. [THR]

  • A24's "Heretic" has a Max premiere date: March 7. [Deadline]