Donald Trump threatens to shut down NBC and other TV news networks that criticize him

[GennGreymane]

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/wo...-a7994861.html

Donald Trump has threatened to shut down NBC and other American networks, saying that they peddle fake news.

"With all of the Fake News coming out of NBC and the Networks, at what point is it appropriate to challenge their License? Bad for country!" Mr Trump wrote in a tweet.

Mr Trump's tweet came in response to a story written by NBC, which said that Mr Trump had sought to increase America's nuclear arsenal tenfold after taking a look at a briefing slide that showed stead reduction of the US nuclear arsenal since the 1960s. The story cited three officials who were reportedly in the room when Mr Trump made the comments.

"Fake @NBCNews made up a story that I wanted a 'tenfold' increase in our US nuclear arsenal," Mr Trump had tweeted before his threat. "Pure fiction, mad eup to demean. NBC = CNN!"

The President has regularly targeted news networks critical of him since January, when he gave a press conference as President-elect and shouted down a CNN reporter as "fake news". The term - which Mr Trump says he invented but had been used frequently before to describe the proliferation of stories written by anonymous bloggers to spread lies during the 2016 election - has since become one of his go-to insults when the media publishes critical coverage of the Trump administration.

The report about Mr Trump's nuclear arsenal said that the joint chiefs of staff and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson all pushed back on the nuclear ambitions, and that Mr Tillerson later called the President a "moron" following the meeting. Mr Tillerson last week refused to confirm that he had called the President that, and Mr Trump has said that those reports are fake news. During an interview, the President also said that he would have to compare IQ scores with Mr Tillerson if his secretary had actually made the remarks.
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It isn't clear that Mr Trump would be able to easily revoke broadcast licenses for any of the major networks simply because he disagrees with the content they air, however.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which oversees licensing, is an independent agency in the federal government, and isn't required to follow orders directly from the White House as would branches of the executive like the Department of Justice, for instance. While the commissioners of the FCC are appointed by the President and approved by the Senate, the agency's relative independence is there by design to push back on situations where someone in the executive branch would attempt to dampen the free speech protections provided to licensed broadcasters.

Mr Trump's comments came just one day after an American reporter was sentenced to prison in a Turkish court, where she was convicted of terrorist propaganda charges. That imprisonment was widely seen as highlighting the increased targeting of journalists in that country, which has been scrutinized for President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's government crackdown on media freedoms.

Responding to Mr Trump's musing about revoking licenses for broadcast networks critical of him, former US federal Prosecutor and frequent Trump critic Preet Bharara called the President childish.

"Adult daycare shift alert," Mr Bharara tweeted. "Please report for duty."

It wasn't immediately clear if Mr Trump intended to threaten cable news networks as well, which are regulated differently than their broadcast counterparts.

[Cyberowl]

The Snowflake in Chief can't handle the heat. SAD!

[Breccia]

Trump continues to wage war with his only weapon, the line "fake news", that means anything he disagrees with.

We've seen Trump say he wants more nukes before. There is a zero percent chance he can fight NBC in any court of law, and win, based on the strength of his word. All he's doing is making himself look bad -- first by demanding 10x more nukes, or just as bad, acting like someone who would demand 10x more nukes, then attacking the person who said so based solely on his character as a proven liar far beyond even what politics is used to.

There is nothing he can do here, except force media more friendly to him to post "Trump wanted 10x more nukes" stories.

Such as this one.

Or this one.

Or this one.

Simply put: Trump has cried wolf too many times. Now, it's free eating in the sheep pasture. Nobody's coming to help you, Twitler. Not this time.

[Paranoid Android]

Trumpkins and their authoritarian Orange Turd.

[Hobb]

Trump is making history though.

Prior to him Gerald Ford had the lowest approval rating in US history, going back to Truman. But now Trump is the even lower than Gerald Ford.

I guess that's what the Trumpkins call winning???

[Xeones]

I would love to see him actually attempt this.

This would be a lot safer than starting WW3 to push closer to impeachment.

[Allybeboba]

At what part did he threaten to “shut down NBC”?

All I saw was they should have their license challenged. All stations should have their licenses challenged when they report inappropriate comments. It doesn’t matter who it is about.

Every profession with a “license” gets their license challenged if they do something inappropriate, I know I would. Why should networks be treated any differently?

[Xeones]

At what part did he threaten to “shut down NBC”?

All I saw was they should have their license challenged. All stations should have their licenses challenged when they report inappropriate comments. It doesn’t matter who it is about.

Every profession with a “license” gets their license challenged if they do something inappropriate, I know I would. Why should networks be treated any differently?

What have these stations done that would get their licenses challenged?

[Allybeboba]

I would love to see him actually attempt this.

This would be a lot safer than starting WW3 to push closer to impeachment.

You don’t think networks should have their licenses challenged for reporting “lies” or spreading misinformation? Now I am not saying that is what they are doing at all. But, if they decided to do such a thing don’t you think there should be such a recourse?

[Noxx79]

At what part did he threaten to “shut down NBC”?

All I saw was they should have their license challenged. All stations should have their licenses challenged when they report inappropriate comments. It doesn’t matter who it is about.

Every profession with a “license” gets their license challenged if they do something inappropriate, I know I would. Why should networks be treated any differently?

Because they didn’t do anything inappropriate.

I know you have a defect that disables you from understanding implications, but people can imply things without directly saying them.

Do you think trump is saying this because he wants to renew their license?

[Kujako]

What have these stations done that would get their licenses challenged?

The dared to speak ill of glorious leader!

[Noxx79]

You don’t think networks should have their licenses challenged for reporting “lies” or spreading misinformation? Now I am not saying that is what they are doing at all. But, if they decided to do such a thing don’t you think there should be such a recourse?

You’re the expert in lies, so tell us where they are.

[Xeones]

You don’t think networks should have their licenses challenged for reporting “lies” or spreading misinformation? Now I am not saying that is what they are doing at all. But, if they decided to do such a thing don’t you think there should be such a recourse?

Nope. I've never once thought "Wow Fox News should be banned from television in the US".

Because that is unconstitutional.

Reporting factual information about the president, because basically everything relating to him is negative, is not justification to get banned.

[Sorshen]

He knows he'd get destroyed in a court room, so he's left with writing these twitter posts that may still spark his fanatical loyalists.

[Vyuvarax]

At what part did he threaten to “shut down NBC”?

All I saw was they should have their license challenged. All stations should have their licenses challenged when they report inappropriate comments. It doesn’t matter who it is about.

Every profession with a “license” gets their license challenged if they do something inappropriate, I know I would. Why should networks be treated any differently?

Remember, Allybeboba is not a Trump supporter. Just everything he says supports Trump. Lol these people are moronic.

[Dextroden]

He knows he'd get destroyed in a court room, so he's left with writing these twitter posts that may still spark his fanatical loyalists.

And trigger the people that despise him but follow his Twitter loyally.

[PACOX]

You don’t think networks should have their licenses challenged for reporting “lies” or spreading misinformation? Now I am not saying that is what they are doing at all. But, if they decided to do such a thing don’t you think there should be such a recourse?

maybe donnie should be checked for spreading lies too? hold everyone accountable.

[Edge-]

Cool.

Let me know when all the folks that love to proclaim their love of the Constitution and Bill of Rights start criticizing Trump's repeated take on the First Amendment. Because attacking the press isn't totally like, literally one of the first steps in almost every authoritarians (attempted or successful) playbook.

[Allybeboba]

What have these stations done that would get their licenses challenged?

I didn’t say they had done anything. The ability should exist though.

- - - Updated - - -

maybe donnie should be checked for spreading lies too? hold everyone accountable.

That is what we(the public) are here for. Just make sure he doesn’t get elected in 2020. I wouldn’t be surprised if he doesn’t get the nod for the nomination.

[Vyuvarax]

I didn’t say they had done anything. The ability should exist though.

It does exist. Your obfuscation is showing, buttercup.