Rep. Fitzgerald to Newsmax: 'Disappointed' by DirecTV Censorship

Rep. Scott Fitzgerald, R-Wis., said Friday that he is "disappointed" that AT&T's DirecTV made the "troubling" decision to deplatform Newsmax.

"It's something that is an undertone to an overall discussion about freedom of speech," Fitzgerald said during an appearance on Newsmax's "National Report." "My colleagues ... have been very vocal on the Judiciary Committee about saying, Listen, you can't have a free and open society unless all voices are heard."

"So the idea that the censorship or, what some would say, is just limiting the media's ability to get the message out, when it comes to conservative thought, it's troubling, and I'm disappointed to see that DirecTV moved in that direction," he added.

AT&T's DirecTV cut Newsmax's signal Jan. 24, blocking the network from more than 13 million customers of the satellite service, DirecTV Stream, and U-Verse.

Newsmax is America's fourth highest-rated news network in the cable landscape and a top-20 overall channel that reaches 25 million Americans weekly, according to the Nielsen ratings.

While DirecTV said it dropped the popular network due to "cost-cutting" measures, it also carries 22 left-leaning news channels, many of which draw considerably lower ratings than Newsmax, and all of which get paid license fees.

DirecTV has claimed Newsmax was demanding "excessive fees" that would amount to "tens of millions" of dollars. Newsmax has denied that, saying it is seeking an approximate fee of $1 per cable subscriber per year, which is among the lowest requested fees in cable.

"This was never about the fees being excessive," Christopher Ruddy, CEO of Newsmax, said. "DirecTV's position has always been that Newsmax, of all cable news channels, should never get any cable fee whatsoever, not one penny."

"National Report" host Shaun Kraisman pointed out that people who have DirecTV would not be able to hear about Fitzgerald's proposed opioid legislation that seeks to list fentanyl as a Class I narcotic.

"It's called the SOFA Act," Fitzgerald said. "It basically talks about overdoses of fentanyl and the effect that it's having throughout the country. I see it in my own district in Wisconsin, where there is fentanyl making its way into our state, coming up through the interstate system, being smuggled in over the border."

"If we would just consider it a Class I narcotic, that would not only give law enforcement more teeth, and I'm talking about prosecutors throughout the nation, but I think also would raise it to the level of seriousness that it deserves," he added.

1. DirecTV customers call toll free at 877-763-9762 to complain, demand Newsmax is back on air!

2. Call your congressman or senator at 202-224-3121 and demand they stop AT&T/DirecTV's censorship of NEWSMAX — ask them to give you a date on the hearings!

3. Go to our online petition and get more info: iWantNewsmax.com.

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