Angel Eduardo

Hate speech laws existed in post-WWI Germany. They not only helped the Nazis gain power, they helped the Nazis censor anyone who challenged it. FIRE Senior Fellow Nadine Strossen explains how history proves that censorship only makes anti-Semitism worse. 🎯

Brendan Carr’s authoritarian warning — that networks risk their broadcasting licenses for Iran war reporting that the government doesn’t like — is outrageous. When the government demands the press become a state mouthpiece under the threat of punishment, something has gone very wrong. In 2019, Carr said: “Should the government censor speech it doesn’t like? Of course not. The FCC does not have a roving mandate to police speech in the name of the ‘public interest.’” But today, Carr cites the “public interest” to blatantly threaten news outlets because the president doesn’t like their reporting. Again and again, Carr’s tenure as FCC chairman has been marked by his shameless willingness to bully and threaten our free press. But even by Carr’s standards, today’s hypocrisy is shocking — and dangerous. The American people demand uncensored news about the men and women serving in our armed forces. Our right to a free press is one of the core American freedoms those in uniform have sworn to support and defend. It is long past time for our government officials to remember their own oaths to uphold the Constitution — starting with the First Amendment.

Broadcasters that are running hoaxes and news distortions - also known as the fake news - have a chance now to correct course before their license renewals come up. The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not. And frankly, changing course is in their own business interests since trust in legacy media has now fallen to an all time low of just 9% and are ratings disasters. The American people have subsidized broadcasters to the tune of billions of dollars by providing free access to the nation’s airwaves. It is very important to bring trust back into media, which has earned itself the label of fake news. When a political candidate is able to win a landslide election victory after in the face of hoaxes and distortions, there is something very wrong. It means the public has lost faith and confidence in the media. And we can’t allow that to happen. Time for change!

Brendan Carr’s authoritarian warning — that networks risk their broadcasting licenses for Iran war reporting that the government doesn’t like — is outrageous. When the government demands the press become a state mouthpiece under the threat of punishment, something has gone very wrong. In 2019, Carr said: “Should the government censor speech it doesn’t like? Of course not. The FCC does not have a roving mandate to police speech in the name of the ‘public interest.’” But today, Carr cites the “public interest” to blatantly threaten news outlets because the president doesn’t like their reporting. Again and again, Carr’s tenure as FCC chairman has been marked by his shameless willingness to bully and threaten our free press. But even by Carr’s standards, today’s hypocrisy is shocking — and dangerous. The American people demand uncensored news about the men and women serving in our armed forces. Our right to a free press is one of the core American freedoms those in uniform have sworn to support and defend. It is long past time for our government officials to remember their own oaths to uphold the Constitution — starting with the First Amendment.

Why I oppose social media age verification laws.