Rep. Mike Garcia, R-Calif., told Newsmax Tuesday the House GOP is taking Newsmax’s deplatforming by DirecTV "very seriously," and that they "are going to fight like hell" to investigate the move.
"I think at least half of us are taking it very seriously, and this seems to be, again, a double standard on many fronts," Garcia said during an appearance on "Spicer & Co."
"We've been reaching out to the cable station [DirecTV] to find out if they're actually making money off of Newsmax. Was this a business decision? Or was this strictly a political vendetta against a news outlet that is giving a voice, not only to conservatives, but also to Americans who are looking and are thirsty for objective news sources?
"So, we're looking at this very seriously right now," Garcia continued. "When you deplatform someone who you disagree with, it eventually does boomerang with you and these same entities will not like you eventually and do the same to you if you don't protect that First Amendment."
DirecTV customers call toll free at 877-763-9762 to cancel/complain
AT&T's DirecTV cut Newsmax's signal Jan. 24, immediately blocking the network from more than 13 million customers of the satellite service, DirecTV Stream, and U-Verse.
This is the second time in the past year AT&T has canceled a conservative channel, with DirecTV deplatforming OAN in April 2022.
Despite Newsmax being the fourth highest-rated cable news channel, a top 20 cable news channel overall, and watched by 25 million Americans on cable alone, according to Nielsen, DirecTV said it was taking the step as a "cost-cutting" measure.
Garcia highlighted the importance of the First Amendment and said Republicans in the House will investigate AT&T’s motives.
"It's the First Amendment that was critical in the Constitution and so we are going to fight like hell to make sure that this is looked at and do a deep dive on this and make sure that justice is served and that we're not deplatforming people for political purposes," the California congressman said.
Actions to Take Now
1. DirecTV customers call toll free at 877-763-9762 to cancel/complain.
2. AT&T customers call toll free at 888-855-2338 to cancel/complain for U-verse, cellular, and wireless services.
3. 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!
4. Go to our online petition and get more info: iWantNewsmax.com.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.