(NewsNation) — Google is under fire for alleged discrimination against faith-based programming by YouTube TV, which the tech giant owns and operates.
In a letter to Google and parent company Alphabet, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr told CEOs Neal Mohan and Sundar Pichai that he has received complaints that YouTube TV has an unwritten policy that discriminates against faith-based content.
Carr cites the example of Great American Media, which says that YouTube TV refuses to carry it, despite being the second fastest-growing channel in cable television. He said the network is carried on cable and streaming services Comcast, Cox, Hulu, FuboTV and DirecTV Stream.
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In a post on X, Carr said he’s “asking Google for answers.” In his letter, he said the allegations come at a time “when American public discourse has experienced an unprecedented surge in censorship.”
NewsNation reached out to Google and its parent company for comment, and this story will be updated with their response.
In an interview with NewsNation’s Adrienne Bankert, Great American Media CEO Bill Abbott said the channel celebrates faith, family and country. Since the channel’s launch in 2021, Abbott said the positive response from viewers has been overwhelming: “I get an outpouring of affection, and a feeling of like, we have nowhere else to go, and after a long, hard day, it’s great to be able come home, put your channel on and know we are going to have something to enjoy that won’t in any way be dark or drive us to feel divisive.”
Great American Family, the company’s flagship network, bills itself “as America’s premiere destination for quality family-friendly programming, featuring original Christmas movies, rom-coms and classic series that celebrate faith, family and country.” It’s available in 50 million households via cable and satellite providers, according to the channel.
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Star power
In 2022, Candace Cameron Bure, a devout Christian, joined the channel as its chief creative officer. The actress, producer and best-selling author grew up playing D.J. Tanner on “Full House” and revived the role for a Netflix original series, “Fuller House.” She starred in Hallmark Channel movies before joining Great America Media. Cameron Bure caused controversy after saying the Hallmark Channel was a different network than when she started, and she believed Great American Family would keep traditional marriage “at its core.”
“What really differentiates our channel from some of the other ones out there is that we’re not afraid to talk about God and God’s hand in our lives instead of fate or providence,” Cameron Bure told The Hollywood Reporter.
