When a novel flu epidemic hit Springfield on a 1993 episode of The Simpsons, devout Christian neighbor Ned Flanders feared that his chuckling at a suggestive joke on Married … with Children might have prompted divine wrath.
“Oh, the network slogan is true!” Flanders wailed, referring to the home of The Simpsons and Married … with Children. “Watch Fox and be damned for all eternity!”
Thirty-three years later, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Brendan Carr aims to mitigate another epidemic spreading under the radar in children’s TV programming, lest it widely infect impressionable eyes and ears: gender ideology.
He has thrice publicly excoriated congressional Democrats in the past two weeks for opposing the shorthanded commission’s work to “ensure that parents have the information necessary to decide what is appropriate for their own kids and families to watch,” as Carr posted Monday afternoon on X and had reposted by Tuesday morning in case anyone missed it.
Carr first blasted “nearly 70” Democratic lawmakers Sept. 28 for “pushing to prevent parents from having any say over their children being exposed to controversial gender identity ideologies” on TV, referring to a June 5 letter from Massachusetts Sen. Ed Markey and a June 22 letter led by California Rep. Mark Takano, signed by 68 House Democrats in all.
He pointed to Disney Jr.’s 2018 reboot of the 1980s cartoon Muppet Babies, which in the episode “Gonzo-rella” has male Gonzo wearing a “princess dress to a royal ball,” passing as a girl and going by plural pronouns. Netflix’s Strawberry Short Cake reboot “promotes a trans character that wears clothing that matches the transgender pride flag,” Carr said.
Contrary to these brands promoting themselves as “family friendly […] the FCC’s record is now replete with all sorts of examples of Hollywood and New York programmers going around parents to promote their gender ideologies,” he said.
In both posts, Carr shared Takano-specific images of his Sept. 22 response letter to apparently every Democrat who signed the congressman’s letter. He does not appear to have shared the original 204-page PDF beyond page 14 of the commission’s document feed as of Tuesday night; the most recent letters posted to Carr’s own commission page are from 2025.
