1. United States
2. Iowa
3. Letter

Why Is the FCC Being Turned Into a Political Censor? I am asking you to stop the Federal Communications Commission from acting as a censorship arm for the Trump administration, and to hold Chairman Brendan Carr accountable for threatening broadcasters over lawful editorial decisions. This week, Jimmy Kimmel announced that his interview with Texas Senate candidate James Talarico would not air on ABC because the FCC had threatened his show, the network, and local affiliates. The interview aired only on YouTube. This wasn't isolated: in February, Stephen Colbert said CBS pulled his own Talarico interview off the air under the same pressure, and the FCC separately opened an investigation into ABC's "The View" after Talarico appeared there. A recent poll found that 68 percent of Americans oppose government pressure on broadcasters to silence speech officials dislike — yet the threats keep escalating. This isn't a partisan complaint. The FCC's own Democratic commissioner, along with press-freedom groups spanning the political spectrum, has called these actions unconstitutional and warned that no host or network should have to weigh federal retaliation before booking a candidate. I rely on televised interviews to learn who's running for office before I vote. When a federal agency intimidates a network into pulling a Senate candidate off the air, it isn't some abstract free-speech violation — it's the government deciding, on my behalf, what I'm allowed to see before I choose my representatives. I am asking you to: Co-sponsor the Broadcast Freedom and Independence Act (H.R. 1880 / S. 867), which would bar the FCC from revoking licenses or taking action against broadcasters based on viewpoint Demand a congressional hearing into Chairman Carr's pattern of threatening broadcasters over coverage he dislikes Publicly oppose any attempt by the executive branch to dictate which candidates the public is allowed to hear from The FCC exists to manage the airwaves, not to decide which candidates Americans get to see. Every time it silences an interview, it answers that question for us, and that should worry anyone who still believes elections belong to voters, not regulators. Thank you for your attention to this.