Republican Brendan Carr has accused major tech platforms of operating a 'censorship cartel'.United States President-elect Donald Trump has tapped Brendan Carr, a Republican known for his criticism of Big Tech, to lead the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Carr, who has served as an FCC commissioner since 2017, will end the "regulatory onslaught" that has held back job creators and innovators and ensure that the communications agency delivers for rural areas, Trump said in a statement on Sunday.

"Commissioner Carr is a warrior for free speech, and has fought against the regulatory lawfare that has stifled Americans' freedoms, and held back our economy," Trump said.

Carr, who has echoed Trump's concerns about censorship by social media platforms, reiterated the need to prioritise free speech following the president-elect's announcement.

"We must dismantle the censorship cartel and restore free speech rights for everyday Americans," Carr said in a post on X.

While the FCC regulates radio and TV as well as broadband internet services, Carr has called for the agency to adopt a broader remit that includes overseeing big tech companies such as Google, Apple, Meta, and Microsoft.

In a chapter of "Project 2025," a blueprint for overhauling the federal government produced by The Heritage Foundation, Carr argued that Section 230 of the Communications Act should be limited to crack down on what conservatives say is widespread viewpoint discri ...