Trump’s FCC is investigating NPR and PBS stations over sponsorships

Brendan Carr, the Federal Communications Commission’s new chairman, on Wednesday ordered an investigation into the sponsorship practices of NPR and PBS member stations.

Brendan Carr, the Federal Communications Commission’s new chairman, on Wednesday ordered an investigation into the sponsorship practices of NPR and PBS member stations. In a letter obtained by CNN, Carr said he was “concerned that NPR and PBS broadcasts could be violating federal law by airing commercials.” “In particular, it is possible that NPR and PBS member stations are broadcasting underwriting announcements that cross the line into prohibited commercial advertisements,” Carr wrote in the letter, which was sent to NPR chief executive Katherine Maher and PBS president and chief executive Paula Kerger. NPR and PBS programming is aired to a network of around 1,500 member stations, all of which choose which programs to broadcast. The stations require licenses approved by the FCC to operate, and these licenses limit them as non-commercial educational broadcast stations, which are prohibited by federal law from airing advertisements. The FCC’s investigation will probe the underwriting announcements and policies of NPR and PBS, as well as their broadcast stations. In a statement, Maher emphasized that the radio broadcaster and its member stations have complied with FCC regulations. “We are confident any review of our programming and underwriting practices will confirm NPR’s adherence to these rules,” Maher wrote.