Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr warns broadcast networks about airing fabricated election polls, saying stations could be violating federal license rules. In posts on X, he argues there has been a surge in “fake polls” and “suppression polls” meant to interfere with electoral processes by affecting voter turnout and enthusiasm.
Carr’s comments do not name specific broadcasters or individual poll results, but multiple outlets link his warning to reporting on President Donald Trump’s low polling numbers. Several stories note that Carr frames the issue as a regulatory and ethical matter for broadcasters, citing obligations tied to “news distortion” and “broadcast hoaxes.”
Some coverage adds a recent development involving polling: Forbes and others mention that a pollster admitted to fabricating results for some races. Deadline and the Washington Examiner similarly connect Carr’s warning to broader concerns about newsroom vetting of political polling information, while Gizmodo largely repeats the core warning and quoted language about federal license prohibitions.
