Report: Carr Suggests Some Broadcasters Could Lose Licenses

RADIO ONLINE | Wednesday, October 22, 2025 | 4:16pm CT

Brendan Carr

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr is signaling a tougher stance on broadcasters who fail to meet public interest obligations, saying in a recent interview that station licenses "are not sacred cows" and could be revoked if standards are not upheld.

Carr made the remarks during a conversation with Media Research Center President David Bozell, published by NewscastStudio and posted to YouTube as part of what the participants called "Free Speech Week." The discussion touched on a range of topics, but Carr's comments about broadcast license enforcement stood out as the clearest indication yet that the FCC under his leadership may revisit how aggressively it applies the public interest standard.

"I've said from the get-go: Broadcast licenses are not sacred cows. If you think there's nothing you can do to lose a license, then it's not a license -- that's called a property right," Carr said. He added that while revocation would involve "a whole process," he remains open to the idea that "some broadcasters may very well end up losing their licenses."

Carr drew a distinction between national content producers like Disney, Comcast, and Paramount -- which the FCC does not license -- and local broadcast stations that carry their programming. He said those stations hold FCC licenses and therefore "have a public interest obligation" to serve their local communities rather than "run sort of a narrow, partisan circus."

The chairman's remarks also highlighted what he sees as a need to "reinvigorate the public interest standard," which he contends has been neglected for decades. "Licensed broadcast television is fundamentally different from any other form of communication," Carr said. "They've been given a monopoly on the airwaves by the federal government, and in exchange for that, they need to serve the needs of their local communities."

Carr pointed to recent examples such as ABC affiliates temporarily preempting Jimmy Kimmel Live! as "a win for re-empowering those local broadcasters," though he conceded that affiliates "were never going to be able to hold out forever."

His suggestion that the FCC might strengthen local preemption rights and take a more active role in enforcing public interest rules could mark a significant shift in regulatory policy. Critics caution that expanding the definition of what constitutes "serving the public interest" could lead to selective enforcement or politicized oversight.

Carr did not outline what specific actions might trigger a license review, but his comments -- made in a friendly interview rather than through formal FCC channels -- raise new questions about how such a major regulatory change might be implemented.