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Outlet profile

Federal Trade Commission

U.S. federal government agency — currently aligned with Trump administration priorities

Owned byIndependent agency of the U.S. federal government; not privately owned. Governed by five presidentially appointed commissioners (no more than three from the same party), serving seven-year terms. Chair Andrew N. Ferguson was designated by President Trump on January 20, 2025.
FundingFunded entirely by congressional appropriations. Congress enacted FY 2026 funding at approximately $383.6 million. The agency does not carry advertising or subscription revenue.
On the administrationbroadly supportive

Background

The FTC was established on September 26, 1914, when President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Trade Commission Act, and it opened formally in March 1915. It was created in response to public frustration with monopolistic trusts that the earlier Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) had failed to curb. For most of the 20th century the agency focused on antitrust enforcement and combating deceptive advertising, operating with bipartisan support as a relatively technocratic body. Its profile rose sharply in the 2010s as it took on high-profile data-privacy and Big Tech cases. Under Chair Lina Khan (2021–2025, Biden appointee), the FTC pursued aggressive merger challenges and platform regulation, drawing sharp criticism from business groups and Republicans. When President Trump returned to office in January 2025, he designated Republican commissioner Andrew N. Ferguson as chair. Ferguson quickly dismantled the agency's DEI programs, launched investigations into social-media content moderation practices, and subpoenaed NewsGuard — a media-rating service — in a move critics called First Amendment retaliation. Ferguson has stated he will pursue antitrust enforcement against Big Tech and in healthcare and labor markets, but his framing of those goals tracks Trump administration rhetoric closely, making the current FTC an instrument that broadly reflects administration priorities rather than an independent counterweight.

Sources

  1. Andrew N. Ferguson Takes Over as FTC Chairman
  2. Federal Trade Commission – Wikipedia
  3. Andrew N. Ferguson – Wikipedia
  4. FTC FY 2026 Congressional Budget Justification
  5. FTC Appropriation and FTE History
  6. Our History | Federal Trade Commission
  7. Andrew Ferguson targets news media as FTC chair – U.S. Press Freedom Tracker
  8. Newly Appointed FTC Chairman to Target DEI – King & Spalding
  9. The FTC Is Threatening Free Speech – ProMarket
  10. New FTC Chair Andrew Ferguson Previews Trump Admin's Plans – Fox Business

Profile compiled 2026-08-04; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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