The chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, Brendan Carr, has warned US media outlets that they could risk losing their licences if they report what he described as misleading or distorted coverage of the ongoing tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran.
In a social media post on Saturday, Carr said broadcasters must operate in the public interest and cautioned that they should “correct course before their license renewals come up.” His remarks came after a complaint by US President Donald Trump accusing media outlets of spreading “distortions” about developments linked to the conflict.
“Broadcasters that are running hoaxes and news distortions — also known as fake news — have a chance now to correct course before their license renewals come up,” Carr wrote. “The law is clear. Broadcasters must operate in the public interest, and they will lose their licenses if they do not.”
Carr also argued that restoring credibility would benefit media organisations themselves, claiming public trust in traditional outlets had fallen sharply. He said trust in legacy media had dropped to around 9 percent and described some networks as struggling with declining ratings.
The warning followed a post by Trump on the social media platform Truth Social in which he criticised what he called a misleading headline about US refuelling aircraft at a Saudi Arabian base.
Trump said reports suggested five US refuelling planes had been struck and rendered unusable, but he disputed that characterisation. According to the president, the base had been hit days earlier, but none of the aircraft were destroyed.
“Four of the five had virtually no damage and are already back in service,” Trump wrote. “One had slightly more damage but will be in the air shortly.”
Trump and the White House have on several occasions criticised media coverage they view as overly critical or unfair.
With inputs from Associated Press
