The Biden administration’s outgoing Federal Communications Commission chair had some choice words about Donald Trump and the threat he poses to the First Amendment as she announced some of the last official decisions of her tenure.
FCC Chair Jessica Rosenworcel has been a bulwark in her role, often resisting proposals that would give a select few companies monopolistic control over communications technology and channels.
This week, the FCC’s enforcement bureau dismissed three complaints filed to the commission by conservative groups that sought to penalize media outlets for their coverage. One claimed that ABC News showed preferential treatment to Vice President Kamala Harris over Donald Trump during their sole debate last September. Another pushed allegations that CBS doctored an interview the organization conducted with Harris during the campaign. And the third claimed NBC violated the FCC’s “equal time” rule by inviting Harris on “Saturday Night Live” before Election Day (NBC Universal, which airs “Saturday Night Live,” is the parent company of MSNBC).
A fourth petition, filed by a liberal group, sought to have the broadcast license of Philadelphia’s WTFX-TV, a Fox station, revoked for broadcasting Fox News programs that promoted Donald Trump’s election denialism after the 2020 vote.
Rosenworcel’s statement acknowledged there were varying reasons for each dismissal, but that all sought to “weaponize the licensing authority of the FCC in a way that is fundamentally at odds with the First Amendment.”








