Gomez Dismisses FCC News Distortion Investigations as ‘Baseless’

WASHINGTON, June 10, 2025 – The sole Democrat on the Federal Communications Commission, Anna Gomez, on Monday slammed recent investigations and public statements from FCC Chairman Brendan Carr alleging  news distortion by major television networks. 

The investigations include reopening “news distortion” probes against ABC, CBS, and NBC – accusing CBS of misleadingly editing a 60 Minutes interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris. Carr has also alleged that Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal, misrepresented coverage of the Abrego Garcia case and failed to adequately report on press conferences held by former President Donald Trump.

“The news distortion complaint against 60 Minutes is without basis,” ​​Gomez said during a webinar hosted by the Freedom of the Press Foundation on Monday. “The FCC has continued, basically harassing CBS, even though there is no basis for this investigation.”

Gomez stated that under FCC rules, a legitimate news distortion case must involve a significant event and also possess clear evidence that broadcasters deliberately distorted a factual news report. 

She emphasized that broadcasters refer only to licensees or local broadcasters, not national networks. By that standard, she dismissed the case against Comcast/NBCUniversal. 

“Comcast is not a broadcast licensee,” she argued. “The complaint of news distortion against Comcast right there, falls on its face, because it is an attempt to control something that the FCC actually doesn't license.” 

Gomez, who embarked on a First Amendment Tour in April, concluded her comments by reverberating her call to protect the First Amendment. 

“The freedom of the press is important,” she said. “It's important for the press to hold all of us to account, regardless of what party we're in, because it is the fourth estate. If we're not going to see pushback from our political leaders, then we certainly want to continue to support a free and independent press.”

The FCC has yet to announce any formal conclusion to its news distortion investigations against CBS and Comcast.