Led by Trump-picked Chairman Carr, the FCC takes aim at media companies

NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS, NPR and KCBS radio all have one thing in common: They’re under scrutiny from the Federal Communications Commission, which is now being led by Brendan Carr, a Republican who has praised President Donald Trump as a leader in combating bias in the media. NBCUniversal and its parent company, Comcast, were the latest media companies to receive word of an investigation by the FCC. In a letter sent to Comcast CEO Brian Roberts, Carr wrote that the FCC’s enforcement bureau will probe whether the company was “promoting invidious forms of discrimination in violation of FCC regulations and civil rights laws” by prioritizing diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Carr said he will ensure that media companies are doing away with such DEI efforts, which were targeted in an executive orders signed by Trump last month. “Promoting invidious forms of discrimination cannot be squared with any reasonable interpretation of federal law,” he wrote. Carr asked the media company to provide “an accounting of Comcast’s and NBCUniversal’s DEI initiatives, preferences, mandates, policies, programs, and activities.”