Media Matters sues FTC over ‘retaliatory' investigation

Politico

3 hours ago

A liberal media watchdog group has filed suit against the Federal Trade Commission, saying it was placed under investigation in retaliation for its reporting about extremist content on the social media site X.
Media Matters said in the suit filed Monday in federal court in Washington that White House appointees in the FTC were seeking to punish the organization on behalf of Elon Musk, the billionaire owner of X who until recently had a prominent role in the Trump administration.
The FTC notified Media Matters last month that it was investigating the organization over whether its reporting on X amounted to illegal collusion with advertisers.
'The Court should put an end to the latest effort by the Trump Administration and Elon Musk's government allies to punish, intimidate, and harass Media Matters for publishing reporting they do not like,' it said.
In November 2023, Media Matters reported that ads were appearing next to pro-Nazi posts on X. Musk, the lawsuit said, 'promised a 'thermonuclear' lawsuit against Media Matters—and his supporters in government were quick to pile on.'
Two subsequent investigations from attorneys general in Missouri and Texas, which Media Matters asserts were both also retaliatory, were later dismissed by federal judges on First Amendment grounds.
Neither the White House nor the FTC responded immediately to requests for comment from POLITICO.
Media Matters said the federal investigation is part of a broader politicization of the agency under the administration.
'The Trump Administration has opened investigations into former officials who were critical of the President,' the lawsuit said. 'And it has targeted swaths of civil society deemed to be disloyal: universities, cultural institutions, public radio, and other media outlets.'
Trump in March fired the FTC's two Democratic members, Alvaro Bedoya and Rebecca Kelly Slaughter, overturning decades of precedent. The agency now has three commissioners, all Republicans. Several key leaders at the agency have previously spoken out against both Media Matters and advertiser boycotts like the one that affected X, the lawsuit said.
Those named in the complaint include FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson and commissioners Mark Meador and Melissa Ann Holyoak.
The organization also wrote that the administration's investigation has cast a chill on its reporting, preventing staff from covering Musk's relationship with Trump and connections between right-wing media and the FTC.
'This is a significant free speech issue, and Media Matters will not back down from this fight,' Angelo Carusone, chair and president of the nonprofit, said in a statement. 'If the Trump administration is allowed to use this unlawful investigation to punish legitimate reporting on behalf of a political ally, then there is nothing to stop it from targeting anyone who stands up and exercises their rights.'