FCC commissioner: Trump on a mission to 'censor and control' media

A commissioner at the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is warning that President Trump's administration is attempting to intimidate or crack down on media companies that are unsupportive of his agenda.

"Let's be clear: What this administration is doing is, it is on a campaign to censor and control," FCC commissioner Anna Gomez said Monday during an appearance on CNN. "And in particular with broadcasters, it is harassing them ... into covering the news the way they want it to be covered."

Gomez had been asked about pending litigation between Trump and Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS News.

Trump sued Paramount last year over a "60 Minutes" interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris, arguing it was intentionally edited to cast her in a favorable light. The network has separately been hit with a "news distortion" complaint over the interview that Trump's FCC Chair Brendan Carr has indicated he intends to pursue.

Last week, the executive producer of "60 Minutes" resigned from the program, citing the ongoing saga and saying he could no longer preside over the show independently, and anchor Scott Pelley called out Paramount on air over rumors of a potential settlement with Trump.

Paramount is currently looking to secure a megamerger with Skydance, a deal that will need approval by the Trump administration to go through.

The back-and-forth has led critics such as Gomez to suggest Trump's effort to influence media coverage is working.

"I can't really speak to the merits of that transaction," Gomez said of the Paramount/Skydance deal. "But I can tell you that there is no case of news distortion in the '60 Minutes' interview or the clips that were shown before the interview of Kamala Harris."