FCC Commissioner Anna M. Gomez will bring her First Amendment Tour to Los Angeles next week, marking the campaign’s first stop outside Washington as she prepares to become the ranking – and only – Democrat on the Commission.
The May 28 event, Public Interest in Free Speech: A Conversation with FCC Commissioner Gomez, will stream live from California State University, Los Angeles. Co-hosted by Free Press, a nonprofit advocacy group promoting media reform and press access, the panel runs from 3:30 to 6:00 p.m. Eastern.
Panelists include U.S. Representative Raul Ruiz, D-Calif.; Southern California Public Radio CEO Alejandra Santamaria; La Opinión Editor Emeritus Gabriel Lerner; UCLA Professor and MacArthur Fellow Safiya U. Noble; and Free Press Co-CEO Jessica J. González.
Gomez launched the tour earlier this year in response to what she describes as escalating federal encroachments on speech and editorial independence. Stops so far have included discussions hosted by ideologically varied organizations like the Center for Democracy and Technology and the Competitive Enterprise Institute.
Following Donald Trump’s return to the presidency, Gomez has emerged as one of the most outspoken critics of what she sees as the misuse of regulatory power to stifle dissent. She has cited examples such as government scrutiny of newsroom decisions, interference in hiring, and pressure on platforms that offer fact-checking tools.
Her role as the Commission’s lone Democrat becomes official next month when Commissioner Geoffrey Starks steps down ahead of the agency’s June open meeting.
“This effort is about defending the First Amendment from those who use it as a weapon against the very freedoms it protects,” Gomez said. “We must continue to stand up for free expression and push back against the Administration’s growing campaign of censorship and control.”
