Brendan Carr tapped to lead FCC by Trump

Photo Credit: Gage Skidmore / CC by 2.0

President-elect Trump has selected Brendan Carr as the Chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)—what does this mean for tech companies?

Carr is currently the top Republican on the FCC and has been critical of the Biden administration’s approach to regulating Big Tech. Last week, Carr wrote to major tech companies including Meta, Google, Microsoft, and Apple stating that they had taken steps to censor Americans. On Sunday, Carr said it is the FCC’s duty to “restore free speech rights for everyday Americans.”

“The censorship cartel must be dismantled,” Carr wrote in a post on X/Twitter. Carr also wrote the FCC chapter for the Project 2025 planning document, where he argues that the FCC should regulate large tech companies. Analysts believe as FCC Chairman, Carr will test the legal limits of the agency’s power by pushing to oversee tech companies.

Before winning the election, Trump said he wanted the FCC to strip broadcasters like NBC and CBS of their licensing for what he called ‘unfair coverage.’ Just days before the election, Trump lawyer Edward Andrew Paltzik issued a letter to The New York Times and Penguin Random House that demanded $10 billion in damages over publishing articles that are critical of Trump. Trump has also sued CBS News, alleging in a lawsuit that the network’s interview with Kamala Harris on 60 Minutes was edited and constituted ‘election interference.’

“Commissioner Carr is a warrior for free speech, and has fought against the regulatory lawfare that has stifled Americans’ freedoms, and held back our economy,” Mr. Trump said in a statement after the pick was announced. Brendan Carr has not immediately addressed the pick.

The Federal Trade Commission and the Department of Justice have bigger roles in regulating Big Tech than the FCC, mostly through antitrust lawsuits and policing violations of consumer protection laws. Congress also oversees the FCC budget and would likely require new legislation to give the FCC regulatory oversight of companies like Alphabet and Meta. The FCC cannot punish television and radio stations for editorial decisions—with the exception of regulating obscenities and violations of children’s television rules.