FCC Chair Carr Threatens Media Over “Fake Polls”

Once again stating that television and radio stations have a responsibility – based on their license requirements – to not broadcast news distortions or hoaxes, Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr said via a post on X, “During this election season, there has been a significant surge in entirely Fake Polls and Suppression Polls designed to do nothing more than interfere with the regular functioning of the electoral process and alter the normal patterns of voter turnout and enthusiasm. Broadcasters are advised to avoid engaging in News Distortions or running Broadcast Hoaxes by airing Polls that would violate their regulatory obligations.” Carr did not point out any examples of “fake polls” but suggested that broadcasters should carefully vet the polls they publish. Commissioner Anna M. Gomez – the sole Democrat on the Commission – has made numerous statements challenging what she calls the FCC’s intimidation of broadcasters through misuse of the rules. She responded to Carr’s post, saying,“Pollsters who intentionally mislead the public should answer for it, but broadcasters who report publicly available polling data should never be punished when a poll is wrong. FCC rules on news distortion or hoaxes do not apply to a station that reports this data in good faith.”