FCC chair reopens 'news distortion' complaints against CBS and NBC
Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr reopened complaints alleging CBS and NBC distorted the news, demanding CBS turn over the full tape and transcript of a 60 Minutes interview and later accusing NBC's parent Comcast of misleading coverage of an immigration case.1234
- Country
- United States (RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180)
- Where
- United States
- Level of government
- National
- Tactics
- Funding and ownership pressure, Official labels
- Stage
- Pressure (see the ladder)
- Head of government at the time
- Donald Trump
- Issue of the day
- The CBS complaint concerned 60 Minutes' October 2024 interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris; the NBC complaint, filed in April 2025, concerned coverage of the wrongful deportation of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.
- Outcome
- Ongoing. The complaints against CBS and NBC remained open, with no formal licensing action announced in the source reviewed.
- Era
- The 2020s
What happened
On January 22, 2025, newly installed FCC Chair Brendan Carr revived a 'news distortion' complaint against CBS over how 60 Minutes edited an October 2024 interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, complaints his predecessor had earlier rejected as being at odds with the First Amendment. The FCC demanded CBS turn over the interview's full, unedited transcript and camera feeds; CBS complied on February 3 and 5, 2025, saying the broadcast was not doctored. On April 16, 2025, Carr said Comcast's NBC and MSNBC had spent days misleading the public about Abrego Garcia's case, and on April 21 the advocacy group Center for American Rights filed a complaint against NBC, ABC and CBS alleging misleading coverage, adding to investigations Carr had already reopened against the three networks in February.12345
What reason was given
Carr said Comcast's outlets had engaged in "news distortion" by, in his words, "implying that Abrego Garcia was merely a law abiding U.S. citizen."1
What changed for reporting
CBS turned over an unedited interview tape and transcript to a communications regulator under the threat of a broadcast-license investigation, while NBC, ABC and CBS all separately faced revived license-related complaints over their coverage of specific news events.2
Timeline
2025
Who acted
| Name | Role in this incident | Office at the time |
|---|---|---|
| Brendan Carr | ordered | Chair, Federal Communications Commission |
| Federal Communications Commission | enforced | Independent federal regulatory agency |
Outlets and journalists
Sources
Claims cited
- Carr said Comcast's outlets misled the public by suggesting Abrego Garcia was simply a lawful resident.
Comcast outlets spent days misleading the American public—implying that Abrego Garcia was merely a law abiding U.S. citizen
Brendan Carr targets news outlets as chair of the FCC, U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, 2025-05-01. Claim 352, checked 2026-09-22. - The FCC demanded CBS turn over the full unedited transcript and camera feeds of the Harris interview.
full, unedited transcript and camera feeds
Brendan Carr targets news outlets as chair of the FCC, U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, 2025-05-01. Claim 353, checked 2026-09-22. - CBS said the broadcast had not been doctored or deceitful after submitting the material to the FCC.
was not doctored or deceitful
Brendan Carr targets news outlets as chair of the FCC, U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, 2025-05-01. Claim 354, checked 2026-09-22. - Carr indicated he had not ruled out further action against the networks.
open minded
Brendan Carr targets news outlets as chair of the FCC, U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, 2025-05-01. Claim 355, checked 2026-09-22. - FCC Chair Brendan Carr reinstated the dismissed complaints against the networks on January 22, 2025; the demand for the CBS transcript followed on January 29.
Jan. 22, 2025 | FCC chair reinstates complaints against three news outlets
Brendan Carr targets news outlets as chair of the FCC, U.S. Press Freedom Tracker, 2025-05-01. Claim 488, checked 2026-09-22.