FCC May Enforce New Rules on Broadcast TV Polls

The Federal Communications Commission might soon hand down rules for broadcast television networks concerning what FCC Chairman Brendan Carr labeled "fake polls" as the midterms approach. On "The Sunday Briefing," Carr insisted that broadcast TV faces a different set of federal demands than cable channels or online sites because stations run under specific FCC licenses.

"The one thing that President Trump gets, fundamentally, is that broadcast TV is completely different than other forms of distribution, including cable," Carr said Sunday.

"And so many broadcasters right now, they [want to] break the deal that they cut with the American people. They get billions of dollars in taxpayer, effectively, subsidized distribution. And what they're supposed to do in exchange is operate in the public interest, not some sort of narrow partisan interest," he added.

This remark follows a clash between President Donald Trump and NBC News's Kristen Welker on August 30. The President complained about what he saw as a mischaracterization of his endorsement record during political primaries. Welker appeared on a local NBC affiliate segment and noted that Trump would "loom large" over the midterms before highlighting his list of endorsements.

"He, of course, has endorsed a slate of candidates in the primaries," Welker said. "He's had some mixed results, but most recently, his pick of Senator Darline Graham, of course, the sister of the late Senator Lindsey Graham, was successful in her primary battle."

Trump fired back on Truth Social, writing, "Kristen Welker, the Unpopular 'Hostess' of the once great Meet the Press, now considered Meet the Fake Press, just stated that Donald Trump has 'mixed results' on his Endorsements of Candidates," before showing off his own list which included backing Sen. Darline Graham.

"How can anyone be allowed to say this, working for freely given Public Airwaves? Results are attached. Because of this purposeful inaccuracy, she will be reported to the FCC for rebuke or punishment," he added.

NBC News pushed back against Trump's pressure in a statement sent to Fox News Digital. The network stood by its "Meet the Press" moderator after the President issued his threat.

"Kristen is one of the best in the business, and we stand by her," an NBC News spokesperson said.

Carr also pointed out that there has been specific interest in reminding broadcasters about their duties regarding what he called "fake polls." He warned these could be used to shut down voters heading into the fall midterms.

"I think President Trump is over the target, and we're looking at a lot of actions. For instance, there's a lot of interest right now in fake polls that are out there," Carr said.

"And so the FCC may put guidance out soon to remind broadcasters about their obligations with respect to not airing fake polls, particularly if they're done to suppress people heading into the fall," he added.

FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez publicly pushed back on the idea of punishing reporters, posting on X: "As I've said many times, the FCC has no authority to punish journalists this administration doesn't like. These threats to press freedom are dangerous. They undermine the foundation of our democracy, and they have no place in it.