The Federal Communications Commission has fast-tracked President Donald Trump’s request for internal discussions about CBS News’s controversial interview with failed presidential candidate Kamala Harris before the election.
The FCC last week granted "expedited processing" for a Freedom of Information Act request that Trump attorney Edward Paltzik filed on Feb. 7 for correspondence between Democratic FCC commissioners regarding the Harris interview, according to records obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
The request seeks former FCC chair Jessica Rosenworcel’s communications with her staff members, other Democratic commissioners, CBS News executives, and the Harris campaign. The request also seeks other commissioners’ correspondence with the network and campaign.
Paltzik sought the records to bolster Trump’s lawsuit against CBS News over the Harris interview, which appeared on 60 Minutes on Oct. 7. In the Oct. 31 lawsuit, Trump accused CBS News of a "brazen attempt to interfere" in the election by doctoring Harris’s rambling response to a question about the Israel-Hamas war. The Center for American Rights, a conservative legal group, submitted a complaint to the FCC on Oct. 16, calling for an investigation into whether CBS News violated FCC licensing regulations through "broadcast news distortion."
Rosenworcel, a Biden-Harris appointee, dismissed that complaint on Jan. 16, saying it sought to "weaponize the licensing authority of the FCC." Brendan Carr, the Trump-appointed FCC commissioner, reinstated the Center for American Rights complaint that Rosenworcel dismissed just before she left office.
It is not clear how long it will take the FCC to compile and hand over the records. But in 2022, the median processing time for expedited requests was just 11 days, a relatively brief amount of time for federal FOIA requests.
Carr, who has served on the commission since 2017, has launched several investigations into media organizations accused of bias against conservatives. He is investigating whether NPR and PBS violated FCC regulations that prohibit taxpayer-funded news organizations from airing commercials for corporate donors. And Carr launched an investigation last week into whether Comcast and NBCUniversal, the parent of MSNBC, have violated anti-discrimination laws by promoting DEI programs.
Trump has racked up a series of legal victories in recent months against media organizations. ABC News settled a lawsuit with Trump for $10 million after its star anchor George Stephanopoulos repeatedly called Trump a rapist during an interview with Rep. Nancy Mace (R., S.C.).
Paramount, the parent company of CBS News, is reportedly discussing a settlement with Trump over the Harris interview lawsuit. Trump sued the conglomerate for $10 billion.