FCC Chairman Brendan Carr has signalled that the regulator may soon issue guidance to broadcast television networks warning them against airing "fake polls" ahead of the US midterm elections, arguing broadcasters have public interest obligations attached to their federally licensed airwaves that cable and online platforms do not share. The move follows a public dispute in which President Donald Trump accused NBC News anchor Kristen Welker of mischaracterising his primary endorsement record and said he would report her to the FCC for "rebuke or punishment," a threat NBC News rejected while standing by its journalist.

Carr, speaking on "The Sunday Briefing," said there was "a lot of interest" at the FCC in reminding broadcasters of their obligations not to air fake polls, particularly if used to suppress voter turnout in the autumn elections, and suggested formal guidance could follow soon. He framed the issue as part of a broader argument that broadcasters receive taxpayer-subsidised distribution in exchange for operating in the public interest rather than "narrow partisan interest." FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez publicly pushed back, stating on X that the agency "has no authority to punish journalists this administration doesn't like" and warning that such threats endanger press freedom.