Chris Ruddy, head of conservative cable news channel Newsmax TV, said he believes Democratic Federal Communications Commission nominees Jessica Rosenworcel and Gigi Sohn are fair-minded people of integrity who deserve confirmation.

Rosenworcel is acting chair and will be chair if confirmed. Sohn would be a new addition, the third Democratic commissioner on the five-member panel, which is currently tied at 2-2. As a former top adviser to Obama-era FCC chairman Tom Wheeler, Sohn backed access to distribution channels for independent programmers, something that clearly resonates with Newsmax.

Ruddy, CEO of Newsmax Media, said he had dealt with both nominees on policy issues, from which he had drawn those conclusions about fairness and integrity.

Rosenworcel has also signaled to Congress she will be taking a fresh look at the competitive marketplace and how much access independent programmers can get, through both traditional and over-the-top channels.

“Increasingly, independently operated cable news channels like Newsmax are being sidelined in favor of a small number of mega-corporations who dominate the channel lineups, forcing upon consumers expensive and little-watched networks,” Ruddy said. “It’s bad for the public interest and dangerous for democracy.

“While I don’t always agree with the nominees on many policy matters, Newsmax fully supports the commission’s mandate to promote diversity, localism, and competition in the marketplace,” Ruddy added. “Newsmax believes both nominees are committed to that mandate and I urge the Senate to confirm the nominations of Jessica Rosenworcel and Gigi Sohn.”

Sohn also got support from another conservative cable channel and another strange bedfellow for a progressive Democrat: One America News Network‘s Charles Herring. ■

Newsmax TV founder Christopher Ruddy said that the House Energy & Commerce Committee Communications Subcommittee Democrats who sent a letter to distributors asking them to justify their carriage of Nexsmax were circulating their own disinformation about his network's coverage of the Jan. 6 Capitol Insurrection.

Also Read: House Dems Say Disinformation Is Spotlight, Not Cudgel

Earlier this week, Reps. Anna Eshoo and Jerry McNerney, both California Democrats, wrote to a dozen cable, satellite and streaming companies calling on them to better combat disinformation--which they principally identified as Fox, Newsmax and OANN--and asked them whether they were going to continue to carry those outlets and, if so, why? The letters came in advance of a hearing Wednesday (Feb. 24) in the House Energy & Commerce Committee entitled “Fanning the Flames: Disinformation and Extremism in the Media.”

Ruddy sent a letter to the bipartisan leadership of the subcommittee and full Energy & Commerce Committee alleging the Democrat disinformation campaign and asking it be included in the official hearing record.

In the letter, Ruddy said: "Newsmax never called the breach of the Capitol 'a sort of romantic idea.'

Instead, he said, the claim was made on the network by liberal law professor Thane Rosenbaum, who Ruddy said had been describing the rally "before any violence or illegal activity had taken place at the Capitol." Ruddy said the Democrats' letter asserting the contrary was "deliberately misleading and intended to contribute to a false narrative about Newsmax..."

He included some on-air quotes by Newsmax hosts during the attack, including:

“They are not supposed to be there, and we certainly don’t condone that…. Hopefully, some of these folks will end up getting arrested, and we will know who they are…. Going through a police barricade, or overrunning a police line, is also something that is … not to be encouraged."--Tom Basile, host of “America Right Now.

and

“And let’s be quite clear here: we condemn the violence, we condemn it. Alright? The people who did illegal things must be arrested.--Greg Kelly, host of Greg Kelly Reports.

But the hearing made clear that the Democrats' concerns went beyond day-of coverage by news outlets to  amplification of unsupported claims about election fraud by various media outlets.

In his letter, Ruddy said that "In general, Newsmax reported fairly and accurately on allegations and claims made by both sides during the recent election contest."

Newsmax Media has hired Brian Peterson, a longtime P.R. executive at Fox cable and regional sports networks and the NFL among other places, as senior VP of communications and marketing for the Newsmax TV parent, reporting to CEO Christopher Ruddy.

Ruddy said, in a release: “Brian is considered one of the smartest people in the industry and has a rock-solid track record to prove it. There’s no question Brian will help elevate the Newsmax brand to new heights and we’re thrilled he’s on board with us.”

Also Read: Indie Programmers Slam FCC Proposed Carriage Rule Change 

Peterson has worked at companies such as Fox Cable Networks, Fox Regional Sports Networks and NFL Properties. More recently he worked at the tech PR agency Bospar, at autonomous ocean-drone developer Ocean Aero and at geographic information systems technology firm Esri. At Newsmax, which is rising in visibility as a right-leaning news outlet, he will work with Ruddy on developing external and internal communications efforts as well as television marketing.

“Newsmax is uniquely positioned to deliver news that matters to its viewers,” Peterson said in the release. “Chris Ruddy has put together a team of top-tier media professionals and I am glad to be part of this exciting and game-changing channel as it continues its incredible growth.”

Elliot Jacobson has joined Newsmax TV as EVP of programming and chief content officer. 

Newsmax is the Boomer-targeted conservative 24/7 cable news channel. 

Related: Moser Named Newsmax TV Chief Revenue Officer

Jacobson comes from the Boomer-targeted RLTV, where he had been EVP and chief content officer. 

“Elliot comes to Newsmax with a significant career in content strategy, programming operations and production,” said Newsmax Media CEO Christopher Ruddy. “We’re excited because Elliot has a tremendous background in content and will help us implement our 2020 plans and beyond.”