Brendan Carr | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, 2025 | |
| 31stChair of the Federal Communications Commission | |
| Assumed office January 20, 2025 | |
| President | Donald Trump |
| Preceded by | Jessica Rosenworcel |
| Commissioner of theFederal Communications Commission | |
| Assumed office August 11, 2017 | |
| President |
|
| Preceded by | Tom Wheeler |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Brendan Thomas Carr (1979-01-05)January 5, 1979 (age 46) Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Machalagh Carr |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | |
Brendan Thomas Carr (born January 5, 1979) is an American lawyer who has served as thechair of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) since 2025. Carr has additionally been a commissioner at the FCC since 2017. Carr studied government atGeorgetown University and graduated from theColumbus School of Law in 2005. He worked in private practice before joining the FCC in 2012 as an attorney and becoming an advisor to commissionerAjit Pai in 2014.
After Pai became the commission's chair in January 2017, Carr was appointed its general counsel. In June 2017, PresidentDonald Trump nominated Carr to serve as a commissioner of the FCC and Carr voted to repealnet neutrality rules in December. As commissioner, Carr initially focused on networks, although he began criticizing social media companies and China over perceived authoritarian policies later in his first term. He was involved inProject 2025 and wrote a section ofthe Heritage Foundation'sMandate for Leadership (2023).
In November 2024, president-elect Trump named Carr as his chair of the FCC. He took office followingTrump's second inauguration. As chair, Carr investigated companies over theirdiversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies, threatening to block business decisions if organizational hiring practices were not changed. He was involved in themerger of Skydance Media and Paramount Global, securing an ombudsman to ensure a "diversity of viewpoints"; Carr's role in the merger led to ethics concerns. Carr has sought to implement or broaden the FCC's mandate toensure public-interest programming, particularly in countering a perceived liberal bias in broadcasts. In September, Carr threatened broadcasters tosuspendJimmy Kimmel Live!, leading to broad criticism.
Brendan Thomas Carr was born on January 5, 1979,[1] in Washington, D.C.[2] He graduated fromGeorgetown University in 2001 with aBachelor of Arts in government with a minor in history and anthropology, then earned hisJuris Doctor,magna cum laude, from theColumbus School of Law at theCatholic University of America.[3] He is aRepublican.[4]
Carr worked forWiley Rein from September 2005 to June 2012, temporarily working forCourt of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit judgeDennis Shedd as a law clerk from 2008 to 2009. Carr joined theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) in July 2012 as an attorney in the Office of General Counsel. He became an advisor to commissionerAjit Pai in February 2014.[3] After Pai became the chair of the FCC in January 2017, Carr was appointed as its general counsel.[5] He married Machalagh Carr, the former oversight staff director on theHouse Committee on Ways and Means, with whom he has two children.[6]
In May 2017,Politico Pro reported that Carr was among several potential candidates to be nominated for the vacant FCC seat previously occupied byTom Wheeler.[7] On June 28, presidentDonald Trump nominated Carr to the commission.[8] Carr appeared before theSenate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation the following month in which he defended his independence over his association to Ajit Pai.[9] On August 2, the committee advanced his nomination, althoughDemocrats objected to a five-year continuation of Carr's term.[10] The following day, Carr was confirmed by theSenate in avoice vote.[11] As commissioner, he visited afiber optic cable manufacturing facility inNorth Carolina that month.[12] Carr marked his tenure with a focus on wireless infrastructure policy, particularly in streamlining deployment of5G towers.[13] He voted to repealnet neutrality rules in December.[14]
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Although Carr was confirmed through the remainder of Wheeler's term, his nomination for a five-year term elapsed at the conclusion of the first session of the115th United States Congress in January 2018. Democrats intended to combine Carr's reconfirmation with a nominee to succeed commissionerMignon Clyburn, who was widely expected to retire.[15] The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation voted to advance Carr's nomination for a five-year term in a 14–13 vote along party lines on January 18; Democrats mounted opposition over Carr's vote to repeal net neutrality.[16] After his nomination was temporarily held up byWest Virginia senatorJoe Manchin over exempted rural broadband subsidies in the Mobility Fund and byAlaska senatorsDan Sullivan andLisa Murkowski over an Alaskan telecommunications company's exclusion from the rural health subsidies,[17] Carr was confirmed by the Senate on January 3, 2019, amida government shutdown that furloughed most employees at the FCC.[18]
At a regulatory summit inBrussels in February 2018, Carr outlined a three-step process to ensure regulators are prepared for 5G.[19] Later that month, he discussed streamlining the historic and environmental review process for 5G networks.[20] Carr's plan received criticism from city officials,[21] and also fromNative American tribes—whose role in the review processes would be nullified, and consequently Democrats,[22] although it was praised by telecommunications companies, includingSprint andAT&T;[22] the plan was approved by the FCC in September.[23] In July, Carr proposed aUS$100 milliontelehealth fund for low-income Americans.[24] The following month, the commission unanimously approved the fund as an extension of theUniversal Service Fund.[25]
Leading up to theCOVID-19 pandemic, Carr began philosophically distancing himself from Pai, focusing on reformingSection 230 of theCommunications Decency Act.[26] He continued to focus on 5G, announcing a blueprint for the FCC to follow in March 2021.[27] Nomination delays from presidentJoe Biden enabled the FCC to retain a majority.[28] His efforts to advance 5G faced resistance from theBiden administration, leading to a public conflict between Carr and administration officials, including the president.[29] He led an effort to withhold authorization from Chinese manufacturers, includingHuawei andZTE, over alleged national security concerns.[30]
In September 2022, a policy advisor to Ajit Pai contacted Carr to introduce him to Wesley Coopersmith, the chief of staff tothe Heritage Foundation presidentKevin Roberts. Coopersmith informed him of a working project, later known asProject 2025, to redevelop thefederal government towards aconservative philosophy, sending him the first and seventh edition of the Heritage Foundation'sMandate for Leadership. Carr told Coopersmith that he was interested in contributing to Project 2025; despite the possibility that Carr's work could be considered political activity byInternal Revenue Service statute, an ethics lawyer for the FCC determined that Carr would not be in violation of theHatch Act, although she warned that he should distance himself from his work at the FCC. Carr wrote several pages involving telecommunications and technology regulation for Project 2025.[31] His work included calling for regulating technology companies, imposing transparency rules, and ending Section 230.[32]
As early as 2020, Carr was believed to be a possible successor to chairmanAjit Pai.[33] AfterDonald Trump's victory in the2024 U.S. presidential election, he was widely expected to be named as chair of the FCC.[34] According toThe New York Times,Elon Musk privately expressed support for Carr, with whom he had a good relationship.[35] On November 17, 2024, Trump named Carr as his nominee for chair.[36] Carr stated his intention to broaden the FCC's mandate to include social media companies.[37] In December 2024, Carr wrote a letter to Disney CEOBob Iger that stated that "Americans no longer trust the national news media to report fully, accurately, and fairly", that "ABC's own conduct has certainly contributed to this erosion in public trust", and that he would be "monitoring the outcome" of unrelated financial negotiations of ABC affiliates.[38]
Carr became chairman after theTrump's second inauguration on January 20, 2025, although he lacked a Republican majority, pending the confirmation ofOlivia Trusty.[39] That month, Carr ordered an investigation intoNPR andPBS sponsorships as a violation of commercial advertising regulations and stated that he did not believeCongress should continue to fund both organizations.[40] The following day, he requested a transcript of vice presidentKamala Harris's interview on60 Minutes;[41] the FCC released the transcript in February.[42] Earlier in January, Carr reopened a complaint againstWPVI-TV (ABC's Philadelphia owned-and-operated station) that had been dismissed byJessica Rosenworcel, his predecessor as FCC chair,[43] over ABC's moderation of theSeptember 2024 presidential debate between Trump and Harris.[44] Carr also accused the network of trying to "evade" the FCC'sequal-time rule when Harris appeared on the finalSaturday Night Live episode before the 2024 election.[43]
Carr heralded a shift in the FCC's purpose towards leveraging thebully pulpit against opponents ofTrump's ideology.[45] An ally of Musk,[45] he awarded Musk'sSpaceX federal radio spectrum,[46] and began an investigation intoEchoStar over 5G deployment requirements, threatening to give satellite spectrum to SpaceX instead;[47] in response to the inquiry, EchoStar stopped paying interest payments.[48] In April, Carr urged European countries to sign contracts with SpaceX over Chinese competitors.[49] He eliminated a proposal that would have barred landlords from forcing bulk internet service on residents,[50] and publicly questioned theGlobal Positioning System, seeking alternatives.[51] In March 2025, Carr announced an initiative titled "Delete, Delete, Delete" with the aim of eliminating existing telecom regulations.[52][53] Carr utilized Direct Final Rule to remove regulations without the required full public comment period.[54]
In February, as part of thesecond Trump administration's push to curbdiversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts,[55] Carr ordered investigations into DEI practices atComcast,[56] as well as intoKCBS over its coverage of immigration actions inSan Jose, California.[57] In apparent response to Carr,Paramount Global, which hada merger pending before the FCC, ended its DEI policies.[58] In March, Carr toldBloomberg News that he would block any mergers involving companies with DEI;[59] the following week, he announced that he had opened an investigation intoThe Walt Disney Company over its DEI policies,[60] and also threatened to revoke ABC's broadcast license over the practices.[61] Citing a complaint fromGreat American Media, Carr sent a letter toGoogle chief executiveSundar Pichai andYouTube executiveNeal Mohan asking ifYouTube TV was engaging in "faith-based discrimination".[62] The following month,T-Mobile closed its joint venture deal withLumos Networks after agreeing to end its DEI policies.[63] The FCC approvedVerizon's acquisition ofFrontier Communications in May, assuring a commitment from Verizon that it would end its DEI practices.[64]
In response to the first two months of Carr's tenure as FCC chairman, former FCC commissioner and acting chairMichael Copps said that "Carr is the most ideological chairman we've ever had — and the most political" and Copps expressed deep concern over the agency's future.[38] Former FCC chairsTom Wheeler,Reed Hundt, andAlfred C. Sikes criticized Carr's investigations of news organizations as violating the First Amendment,[65] while FCC commissionerGeoffrey Starks (who resigned in June 2025) argued that Carr's investigations of corporate DEI policies exceeded the FCC's statutory authorities.[66]
The FCC returned to a quorum with Trusty's confirmation, giving Republicans a majority.[67] Carr moved to endnet neutrality, although a federal appellate court had already struck down net neutrality regulations,[68] and refused to enforce a rule that would have lowered prison phone call prices.[69] Carr has sought to broaden the FCC's mandate to adjudicate what content appears on television, particularly in countering a perceived liberal bias in broadcasts.[70]
The commission approved Paramount Global's merger withSkydance Media in July, achieving a commitment from Skydance that the resulting company,Paramount Skydance, would not have DEI policies.[71] The commitment included installing an ombudsman to ensure a "diversity of viewpoints".[72] Carr suggested in an interview withCNBC that the cancellation ofThe Late Show franchise by Paramount subsidiaryCBS helped the company comply with regulations.[73] TheFreedom of the Press Foundation filed an ethics complaint against him that month, citing his statements and actions in the merger process of Skydance Media and Paramount Global.[74]
In September 2025, Carr pressuredthe Walt Disney Company, which owns theAmerican Broadcasting Company (ABC), over commentsJimmy Kimmel made about theassassination of Charlie Kirk, on his eponymous ABC showJimmy Kimmel Live! Carr encouraged local stations to preempt Kimmel's show,[75] stating in comments made on the right-wing political commentatorBenny Johnson's podcast that the FCC "can do this the easy way or the hard way".[76] Carr added that "companies can find ways to change conduct and take action, frankly, on Kimmel, or there's going to be additional work for the FCC ahead."[76] Shortly afterwards,Nexstar Media Group, the largest television station owner in the United States, stated that it would not airJimmy Kimmel Live! "for the foreseeable future".[77] Nexstar was in the process of acquiringTegna, the fourth-largest broadcaster, a move necessitating FCC approval;[78] the company later denied that Carr's comments influenced its decision.[77] Hours later, ABC announced that it was pulling the show indefinitely.[75] According toThe Wall Street Journal, the company's decision was made byBob Iger, the chief executive of Disney, andDana Walden, the co-chairman ofDisney Entertainment.[79]
House minority leaderHakeem Jeffries, joined by House minority whipKatherine Clark andHouse Democratic Caucus chairPete Aguilar, denounced Carr's comments and called for him to resign.[80] Senate minority leaderChuck Schumer also called for Carr's resignation,[81] and wrote a letter to Carr along with tenSenate Democrats criticizing his comments and demanding answers to questions about their implications for broadcasters.[82] Several Republican members of Congress criticized or expressed concern about Carr's comments,[82] includingKentucky senatorRand Paul,[83] as well asTexas senator andCommittee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation chairTed Cruz, who compared Carr's statements to mafia tactics and called the threats "dangerous as hell".[84] Conversely, Trump praised Carr as a "great American patriot" and his actions, citing purportedly overwhelmingly negative coverage of his presidency.[85]
In November 2025, Carr reposted a tweet from Trump calling on NBC to fire late-night hostSeth Meyers "immediately" due to his anti-Trump commentary.[86]
Carr denounced theUnite the Right rally in August 2017.[87] In response to theWorld Health Organization's response to theCOVID-19 pandemic, he stated that the organization had been "beclowned". Weeks after thefirst impeachment trial of Donald Trump, Carr described theHouse Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence as a "secret and partisan surveillance machine" and attacked its chairmanAdam Schiff, questioning the collection and publication of phone records inTrump's impeachment inquiry.[5] In a meeting withGeorgia representativeBuddy Carter, Carr wore a goldlapel pin of Trump's face on his suit, in what was perceived as an indication of loyalty.[88]
In an interview withPolitico Pro's Margaret Harding McGill, Carr stated that he foundnet neutrality rules unnecessary. He expressed support for encouraging industry investment and reformingspectrum auctions at the legislative level.[13] As a commissioner, he voted to repeal a rule that required broadcast stations to have a physical studio for each coverage area.[89] Carr criticized an internal plan (obtained byAxios) from thefirst Trump administration that would nationalize 5G network construction,[90] and later decried it as "China-like nationalization".[91] AfterDemocrats on theHouse Committee on Energy and Commerce pressured cable providers to answer to concerns that television programming contributed tomisinformation about the 2020 presidential election in a letter, he described the letter as a "chilling transgression" of freedom of speech.[92] In July 2021, Carr appeared withFlorida governorRon DeSantis to urge presidentJoe Biden to offerinternet service to Cubans in an effort to circumventcensorship, an act that would allegedly violate international law.[93] Carr opposed secretary of transportationPete Buttigieg's efforts to delay 5G network deployments amid apparent risks to flight safety.[94] He dissented in a vote to revokeStarlink's rural broadband subsidies.[95]
In response to an opinion column inThe Washington Post byMark Zuckerberg, the chief executive ofFacebook, outlining his ideas for removing harmful content, Carr criticized Zuckerberg's call for government regulation as a violation of theFirst Amendment.[96] He later praised Zuckerberg's "instincts" to show Trump's posts that amplifiedCOVID-19 misinformation unaltered.[97] Carr supported Trump's "Executive Order on Preventing Online Censorship" targetingSection 230 of theCommunications Decency Act.[98] AsTrump's social media use was threatened by misinformation, including involving the 2020 election, he offered a conservative case for reinterpreting Section 230, reaffirming Pai's supposed ability to do so in October 2020.[99] His arguments were later litigated by theeditorial board atThe Wall Street Journal,the Heritage Foundation, and senatorsJosh Hawley andTed Cruz.[26] After Trump named Carr as his chair of the FCC, he vowed to "dismantle the censorship cartel and restore free speech rights".[100]
Carr supported a bill fromUtah senatorMike Lee that would force the FCC to act within six months to act on mergers,[101] although he approved ofAjit Pai's motion to hold a legal hearing over theattempted acquisition of Tribune Media by Sinclair Broadcast Group months later, citingSinclair Broadcast Group's divestiture plan.[102] In response to criticism from Democratic commissioners over aUS$48 million fine against Sinclair that the commission's Republican majority approved in May 2020 following an investigation settlement, Carr referred to dissent as politically motivated.[103] He approved of themerger of Sprint Corporation and T-Mobile US,[104] as well as the attempted acquisition ofTegna byStandard General.[105] Carr rejected the Open Markets Institute's argument that the FCC could block the then-proposedacquisition of Twitter by Elon Musk.[106] AfterPayPal modified its policies to allow the company to fine users for promoting misinformation, he criticized the move as "Orwellian".[107] In July 2022, Carr proposed forcing large technology companies to pay into theUniversal Service Fund.[108] AfterApple moved to shut downBeeper Mini, he called to investigate the company.[109]
Carr has voiced support for punishing broadcasters over alleged anti-conservative biases,[110] which includes cracking down on speech that Carr says doesn't serve the public interest which he describes as including bias against conservatives.[85] Following thesuspension of Jimmy Kimmel in 2025, Carr stated that he believed public broadcasters should serve the public interest, and that "if there's local TV stations that don't think that running that programming does it, then they have every right under the law in their contracts to preempt it."[76] He further stated that the U.S. was "in the midst of a massive shift in dynamics in the media ecosystem for lots of reasons, again, including the permission structure that President Trump's election has provided. And I would simply say we're not done yet with seeing the consequences of that."[76] After the suspension, social media users found previous comments made by Carr that were contrary to his stated reasons for pressuring the suspension of Kimmel. He referred to free speech as the "bedrock of democracy" and described political censorship as a "tool that those in power use to suppress any challenge to their positions or orthodoxy".[4] In 2019, Carr stated: "The FCC does not have a roving mandate to police speech in the name of the 'public interest.'"[111] In another post from 2022, Carr stated: "Political satire is one of the oldest and most important forms of free speech. It challenges those in power while using humor to draw more into the discussion. That's why people in influential positions have always targeted it for censorship."[76] In 2023, Carr reiterated that "free speech is the counterweight – it is the check on government control. That is why censorship is the authoritarian's dream."[111]
AsChina Mobile sought access to the U.S. market, Carr called for the enterprise's application to be denied and forChina Unicom andChina Telecom to be examined.[112] At a meeting to discuss blocking broadband subsidies for companies that do not remove equipment developed byHuawei andZTE, he warned that cell towers in missile fields inMontana are "running on Huawei equipment".[113] Carr sought to add the drone manufacturerDJI to the Covered List,[114] and referred to a report fromThe Washington Post that showed that DJI accepted Chinese state funding as "deeply concerning".[115] Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, he began directly calling out Chinese officials on social media.[116] Carr supported a ban on Huawei and ZTE devices.[117] Carr has opposedTikTok over national security concerns; thePost described him as its "loudest media critic".[118] In June 2022, he called for Apple andGoogle to remove the app from their stores,[119] afterBuzzFeed News reported that TikTok employees in China had purportedly been able to access data from American users.[120]
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