FCC chief defers to Pentagon on airing US execution on TV networks

On October 9, the head of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Ajit Pai, stated that he would defer to the Pentagon regarding the airing of a planned December 3 military execution on US television networks. This execution, by firing squad, would be the first of its kind in history. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth announced on Thursday that the event, the killing of Nidal Hasan, a former Army psychiatrist convicted of 13 murders, would be livestreamed.

Pai's stance aligns with the Pentagon's decision, as he indicated that the final call would rest with the Secretary of Defense. He emphasized that the FCC would not overrule the Pentagon's determination on this matter. An FCC spokesperson declined to comment on the reported decision.

Major US broadcast networks, including ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox, did not respond to requests for comment regarding their potential involvement in airing the execution. Andrew Jay Schwartzman, a senior counsel at the Benton Institute for Broadband & Society and an expert on FCC issues, asserted that there is no legal basis for the commission to interfere with a broadcaster's decision on whether to broadcast a live execution.

According to Schwartzman, there is no provision in the Communications Act or the Constitution that would grant the FCC the authority to mandate or prohibit content, except in cases of obscenity.

The FCC's 2007 report on violence in television media concluded that the agency lacked the power to regulate violent content. The report stated that violence and depictions of violence were protected by the First Amendment, and courts had found that violent speech was constitutionally protected.