Vice President Kamala Harris’ “surprise” appearance on “Saturday Night Live” wasn’t really that surprising: Hours before the show aired, speculation had circulated on social media that she would appear afterward. a change in his travel itinerary. But the segment, in which Harris appeared with Maya Rudolph, who plays the show’s vice president, was well received by a friendly audience, if not by the FCC commissioner who said NBC was violating the “time” rule. equal” which prohibits networks from granting air time to one candidate and not another.

Commissioner Brendan Carr’s complaint allowed former President Donald Trump to receive free advertising during NASCAR and NFL broadcasts, arguably the best of all possible audiences for Trump at this point in the campaign. Some analysts believe the elections could depend male voters present in greater numbers than women.

But did Trump really have time? An FCC policy advisor seemed to suggest no, saying Weekly Entertainment that Carr’s comments on social media “do not represent those of the agency.”

This is the latest example in which the FCC appears to be giving mixed signals because of the way it is organized.

Carr, who is a Republican, is one of five commissioners on a board currently led by a Democrat, Jessica Rosenworcel. But both are often referred to as “FCC Commissioner” (followed by their name) in the media, which may suggest that these individuals are the heads of the agency and that it is overtly partisan.

In fact, according to the FCC website“Only three commissioners can be from the same political party at any given time and none can have a financial interest in any commission-related matter.”

The commission currently has three Democrats and two Republicans, giving Democrats an advantage on issues such as internet neutrality – and give people who don’t know much about the FCC plenty of opportunity for confusion.

Last month, Rosenworcel completed securities for his critical comments about Trump following the controversy over the editing of Harris’ interview with “60 Minutes.”

After Trump wrote on social media that “CBS should lose its license,” Rosenworcel responded with a statement that read in part: “While the former president’s repeated attacks on broadcast stations may now be familiar, these Threats to freedom of expression are serious and should not be ignored. »

Carr, meanwhile, was among those calling for “60 Minutes” to publish the transcript of the show.

In the latest controversy, after the Associated Press reported Harris’ appearance on “Saturday Night Live,” Carr took to social media, denouncing a “clear and blatant effort to evade the equality rule of the FCC.

After Trump officially filed the complaint, he was offered spots on NASCAR and NFL broadcasts – which some people say. underlines on X, was actually better than “Saturday Night Live,” considering the shows’ respective viewership. Although ratings are not yet available for the Nov. 2 broadcast, the season premiere of “Saturday Night Live” drew an estimated 5.3 million viewers, while “Sunday Night Football” typically draws 20 million on average.

And while Harris’ segment on “Saturday Night Live” included many of his recurring campaign themes in sketch comedy, Trump’s was a brand ad that reached a demographic that is important to him.

THE “Equal time» The rules date back to the Communications Act of 1934 and promise comparable airtime to all “legally qualified applicants.” Carr visited X on Monday to emphasize this means that Robert F. Kennedy Jr. (who is still on the ballot in some states, although he urges his supporters to vote for Trump instead) and Jill Stein have the right to request airtime free to NBC, just like the Navy veteran. Hung Cao, the republican who is stimulating Virginia Senator Tim Kaine – who also enjoyed an appearance on “Saturday Night Live” on November 2.

Just a month ago, Lorne Michaels, executive producer of “Saturday Night Live,” said it was unlikely Harris or Trump would appear on the show. The Hollywood Reporter“You can’t bring in the real candidates because of election laws and equal time provisions. … You can’t have the major candidates without having all the candidates, and there are a lot of minor candidates who are only on the ballot in three states, which gets really complicated.”