Senate Confirmation of Olivia Trusty Paves a Path for Trump's Campaign to Control the Media
Her confirmation gives the FCC the Republican majority Chairman Carr needs to carry out the president’s dangerous agenda
WASHINGTON — On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate confirmed Olivia Trusty as a commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission. Trusty previously served as a top congressional staffer for Sen. Roger Wicker and Rep. Bob Latta, both Republicans.
Upon her swearing in, Trusty will be the third member of the five-person Commission, with two recently created vacancies remaining. Her arrival will give FCC Chairman Brendan Carr a 2–1 Republican majority, likely allowing him to advance a number of controversial initiatives. Carr has long served the interests of large media conglomerates, and is expected to deregulate the sector in ways that will allow them to further consolidate their control over local outlets.
Despite the FCC’s congressional mandate as an independent agency, Carr has readily followed the many dictates of President Donald Trump, who has sought to punish any media entity that challenges the executive branch’s authority or simply questions Trump’s authoritarian political agenda.
Free Press Action Vice President of Policy and General Counsel Matt Wood said:
“Free Press Action hopes that Olivia Trusty will take her oath of office seriously, especially when it comes to supporting and defending the U.S. Constitution. She must not follow the dangerous course set by Brendan Carr, whose greatest political aspiration is serving as President Trump’s censor in chief.
“In normal times, there’d be little reason to oppose the confirmation of a candidate as qualified as Trusty. But these are not normal times.
“When he was in the minority, Brendan Carr proclaimed that the decisions newsrooms make should be beyond the reach of any government official. But since he became chairman, Carr has weaponized the FCC against broadcasters that air coverage President Trump dislikes and launched unjustified investigations into NPR and PBS. Carr’s actions raise serious First Amendment concerns while undermining the FCC’s crucial role as an independent agency. Instead of protecting the FCC’s congressional mandate to act free of political pressure from the White House, Carr is gleefully surrendering the agency’s independence to do Donald Trump’s bidding. From the moment he became chairman, Carr has exploited his power at the FCC to wage war on the truth and threaten to investigate media companies for their sorely needed diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives.
“Trusty’s confirmation gives Carr the majority he needs to radically reshape the media sector in Trump’s image, including offering policy favors to large broadcasters in exchange for their unwavering loyalty to the president. Carr is desperate to carry out the president’s executive orders — including those most Americans oppose. He will try to use the agency’s GOP majority to remove any remaining checks against further broadcast consolidation, leaving people across the country with even fewer options for local news and information.”