President Donald J. Trump has once again thrown down the gauntlet against the corporate media—this time by taking CBS to court. His bold litigation has exposed what millions of Americans already know: the mainstream media is not a neutral institution but a political weapon used to silence, smear, and control. But we must go beyond the courtroom to move from outrage to reform. It’s time to hit fake news where it hurts most: financially.

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) should cap reverse retransmission fees (revenue that local TV stations pay back to their affiliated broadcast networks) at 30 percent to protect local broadcasters, lower consumer costs, and strike a decisive blow against the corrupt media cartel.

Excessive reverse retransmission fees are among the least understood but most abused levers in the modern media economy. Reforming them concretely realigns our communications infrastructure with the public interest and President Trump’s America First agenda.

HOW THEY WORK.

These fees (and ad sales) generate revenue for broadcasters that they use to run their operations and produce local journalism. However, media conglomerates like Paramount Global, the parent company of CBS, have begun charging what’s known as “reverse” retransmission fees to broadcasters. The networks demand a share of broadcasters’ revenue for the right to use their content. This practice was once unheard of, but some networks now regularly require more than one hundred percent of broadcasters’ retransmission fees as “reverse” fees, leaving broadcasters to sustain themselves solely on whatever ad sales they can make with their limited inventory (also capped by the networks, and often amounts to only a few minutes of airtime per hour).

This funnels more and more money out of local markets and local journalism and into the hands of mega media corporations, who threaten broadcasters with content blackouts if they don’t get sky-high payouts.

This problem gets even worse with providers like YouTube TV and Hulu Live. Under their affiliate agreements with the networks, local affiliates can’t even negotiate for online providers to carry the content. The networks do it for them and pay the affiliates whatever they deem reasonable (sometimes, nothing). This gives the networks total control over streaming distribution while robbing local stations of revenue and autonomy in the rapidly growing online video space.

What was once a mechanism to support hometown news is now a corporate racket. Instead of investing in local reporters, meteorologists, and producers, local broadcasters’ funds are siphoned to bloated national newsrooms that churn out anti-Trump propaganda and woke talking points. Meanwhile, higher cable bills pass the cost to everyday Americans.

HIT ‘EM WHERE IT HURTS.

President Trump’s lawsuit against CBS underscores the ideological warfare these media giants are waging. They’ve abandoned any pretense of objectivity, acting instead as political operatives with studios. Capping reverse retransmission fees at 30 percent is not just a technical tweak; it’s a strategic strike on these bad actors’ financial foundations.

We must return power to the communities and stations serving the people. Local broadcasters provide vital coverage—emergency alerts, school board meetings, small business spotlights—that you’ll never find on CNN or MSNBC. They reflect the values of the towns and cities they serve. However, the incentives shift when a national corporation owns the local affiliate. Content becomes homogenized. Narratives are imported. Local journalists lose editorial independence, and viewers get New York news with a local logo slapped on top.

We limit these national behemoths’ ability to weaponize local stations as bargaining chips and ideological delivery systems by capping reverse retransmission fees. We restore breathing room for independent broadcasters and stop the endless consolidation cycle that has gutted journalism in rural and working-class communities.

The FCC can solve both of these issues.

It has the authority to cap reverse retransmission fees and rein in Big Tech and network dominance by eliminating their unfair advantage over local broadcasters. Whether through traditional cable or streaming platforms, the Commission must act decisively to level the playing field.

This reform is in the same spirit as President Trump’s efforts to break up Big Tech, bring back American manufacturing, and take on the pharmaceutical lobby. It’s a populist solution to a top-down problem. It reduces costs, decentralizes power, and reorients the system to serve the needs of regular Americans, not just media executives and political elites.

THE PUBLIC FIGHT.

Critics will claim this is “government interference.” That’s nonsense. The airwaves are public property to which the government grants broadcast licenses to companies that serve the public interest. When national corporations abuse that privilege by hoarding retransmission profits, forcing the slashing of local news staff, and pumping out politicized content, it is not only appropriate for the FCC to step in; it is necessary.

Just as President Trump stood up to China on trade, he now stands up to CBS on the truth. His lawsuit has opened a vital lane for real reform. Capping reverse retransmission fees gives that legal challenge policy teeth. It weakens the media’s monopoly, strengthens local stations, and ensures that taxpayer-owned airwaves serve the public, not the D.C. cocktail circuit.

Make no mistake: this is a fight for the soul of the American media. National networks have shown they cannot be trusted. They’ve censored stories, smeared dissenters, and openly campaigned against conservative candidates. The only remaining check on their power is at the local level, and even that is slipping away under the weight of retransmission extortion.

If we want a media that informs instead of indoctrinates and represents communities instead of manipulating them, we must go upstream to the funding model. Capping reverse retransmission fees is the cornerstone of that effort. And if the networks try to make an end-run by demanding an unfair cut in ad sales, restricting available airtime for local news and weather, or prohibiting broadcasters from trying to reach new audiences through alternative distribution channels, then the FCC should be prepared to step in and stop it.

President Trump was elected with a mandate to put the American people back in charge. Capping reverse retransmission fees does just that. It ensures your local news stays local, your cable bill stays lower, and your country remains free from corporate media control.

Let’s follow President Trump’s lead, end the fake news grift, and get to work capping reverse retransmission fees for the good of our country, our communities, and our future.

Nathan A. Simington is a Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission. Gavin M. Wax is Chief of Staff and Senior Advisor to Commissioner Simington and the co-author of ‘The Emerging Populist Majority’.