FCC Commissioner Anna Gomez sharply criticized the agency’s Media Bureau for dismissing a petition to repeal its controversial “news distortion” policies without a full commission vote.
In a strongly worded statement, Gomez—the FCC’s only Democrat—accused the Media Bureau of abusing delegated authority to shield potentially unconstitutional actions from judicial review and public scrutiny, warning that the move threatens First Amendment values and democratic norms.
“Delegated authority, however, can be abused to shield significant actions from judicial review as only final Commission actions can be appealed,” Gomez said. “That is what appears to be happening in this instance and the consequences for our democracy are serious.”
She described the dismissal as part of a broader pattern of using regulatory power as “a cudgel against broadcasters whose coverage [the Commission] dislikes,” citing leverage over license renewals, merger approvals, and revival of rarely used authorities to target critical news coverage.
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The petition at issue was filed in November 2025 by a bipartisan group of former FCC officials. It sought to rescind the news distortion policy, arguing that it has “significantly chilled and otherwise altered the content of broadcasters’ speech, undermining First Amendment values.”
On June 22, Acting Media Bureau Chief Alexander Sanjenis dismissed the petition on procedural grounds in a two-page letter, stating that petitioners “failed to present their request in a manner that is cognizable under our rules.” The dismissal was issued “without prejudice,” and the Media Bureau did not address the underlying constitutional concerns.
Gomez argued that such significant policy decisions should require a full Commission vote rather than an unpublished staff action. She contended the agency has increasingly relied on the long-dormant news distortion policy and other rarely invoked tools to pressure broadcasters.