FCC's Carr: Trump is 'Winning' Against 'Fake News' Media

At the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC), Carr stated that Trump is succeeding in his feud with media outlets he considers 'fake news'. Carr noted that other politicians 'gave way to the legacy national media,' unlike Trump, who, according to the FCC chief, 'smashed the facade'.

Carr stated, 'President Trump took on the fake news media and President Trump is winning.' He further mentioned results such as the defunding of PBS and NPR, as well as changes at MSNBC and CBS.

Carr mentioned the departure of figures like Joy Reid from MSNBC, as well as changes at CBS and the upcoming acquisition of CNN. Paramount Skydance, led by David Ellison, son of Trump ally and Oracle CEO Larry Ellison, purchased CBS News and tapped Bari Weiss as editor-in-chief. The parent company also won the bid to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, which oversees CNN, in February.

David Ellison has stated that CNN's editorial strategy will serve a more politically 'diverse' audience, with similar remarks made about CBS News.

Carr added that 'we’re not at the point yet –– you know, waving the ‘mission accomplished’ flag,’ but reiterated that the president is 'winning'. In December, Carr suggested that the FCC was not independent from the administration, despite the website previously labeling it as an 'independent government agency responsible for implementing and enforcing America’s communications law and regulations'.

The word 'independent' was removed after the agency’s chief testified before lawmakers.

Carr recently threatened to crack down on broadcasters over their coverage of the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. He wrote earlier this month that broadcasters could have problems renewing their licenses due to their coverage, accusing them of 'running hoaxes and news distortions'.

Trump’s war on the news media goes back several years, first amplified during his first campaign for the presidency in 2016.

The former president has accused much of legacy news media as being 'fake news' and has preferred conservative media with reporting favorable toward him and his administrations. Following his return to the White House last year, Trump warned mainstream media outlets that they were 'on notice', after ABC and Paramount Global, before it merged with Skydance, settled lawsuits with the administration.

The White House also released a 'media bias' tracker on its website in November to accuse news reports of omitting context and claim that they include lies, mischaracterization, bias or malpractice.