Florida Governor Ron DeSantis wants thorough investigations as to why the two of the last remaining conservative media outlets on network TV were axed by DirectTV.
DeSantis, who served three terms in the U.S. House, is now calling on his old body to launch a legislative probe on recent decisions by cable carriers to remove One America News Network from their programming last year and now, Newsmax.
Florida Man Keeps His Cool, Walks Out of Publix a Gentleman & Millionaire
DeSantis made his statement on the matter in Brandenton and argued that the Republican-controlled House would be the best way to look into the “intellectual discrimination.”
“I think it does warrant an investigation. I think probably the Congress, in the House, would probably be best to do it. We have helped all these organizations who have been under pressure since I’ve been Governor. … But I really think this is something the Congress needs to look at, and I think they need to ensure that there’s not intellectual discrimination going on when it comes to what people are able to view.”
DeSantis expanded on the idea that ideology shouldn’t be grounds to remove a news program, although how he wants to prevent it or where the limits were unclear.
“I think there should be no ideological litmus test when you have these big companies who have the decision to make or break a news network or any type of network,”
DeSantis isn’t alone. His call for an investigation comes with 41 House Republicans echoing the sentiment and pushing for an investigation. DeSantis also stressed that money doesn’t explain the issue, as other networks were earning less than the OANN and Newsmax.
“And they’ll give different rationales for why they don’t want to do it. The reality is they have so much other content that is very lightly viewed, yet they keep that on. And it seems that it’s the One America News and the Newsmax who are being targeted. So I think it does warrant investigation.
A DirecTV representative claimed otherwise in a statement reported by Newsmax, arguing Newsmax required higher fees.
“We’ve discussed with Newsmax on several occasions that we’d like to offer their programming; however, the network is now seeking significant fees that we cannot pass on to our broad customer base. Newsmax disagreed, claiming their fee was a 75% discount to its “market value.”
At this point, the parting details are unclear; while Newsmax is acting as if they were dropped, they requested a change. If this is true, there’s little explanation for why DirecTV would drop them on this basis, as opposed to simply refusing to pay the feed and allowing Newsmax to leave of their own volition.
The story’s contradictions and unresolved issues likely motivated DeSantis and his fellow republicans to call for investigations into the matter. In the meantime, Newsmax makes do by live streaming on Youtube.
The story comes off the heels of recent bannings, most notably former president Donald Trump’s reinstatement by Facebook and the large-scale return of nearly all banned accounts on Twitter since Elon Musk’s takeover.
In response to DirecTV dropping Newsmax, Governor DeSantis affirms that there should be "no ideological litmus test" for corporations when making decisions about what people are able to view. 👇 pic.twitter.com/UiWfE3RpYA
— DeSantis War Room 🐊 (@DeSantisWarRoom) January 31, 2023
Other stories you may want to read:
Democrats Blame ‘White Supremacy’ After 5 Black Cops Beat A Black Man to Death
