NYC Mayor’s Demand to Ban Newsmax from Taxi Screens Drawn as Censorship Charge

Rep. Nicole Malliotakis has condemned Manhattan Borough President Brad Hoylman-Sigal for his efforts to remove Newsmax from New York City taxicab screens, labeling the move censorship and an attack on consumer choice.

In a recent post on X, the Staten Island and Brooklyn Republican criticized Hoylman-Sigal for what she described as over-regulation of taxi-screen provider Curb. Malliotakis noted that Newsmax is carried in 60 million homes and is a trusted news source.

“If a cab rider doesn’t want to watch, they can turn it off but that should be THEIR choice, not a leftie politician’s,” Malliotakis stated.

Newsmax has responded strongly to the call for removal, calling it a “pure act of censorship targeting a news organization reaching over 50 million Americans regularly.” The network emphasizes its commitment to factual reporting and claims this action drives the far left into frustration.

Hoylman-Sigal wrote in a letter to Mayor Zohran Mamdani urging officials to intervene and pressure Curb to drop Newsmax as a condition of licensure. She cited the platform’s history of misinformation and disingenuous reporting.

Supporters of Newsmax, including Stefano Forte, president of the New York Republican Club, labeled the demand “cancel culture in the free market.” Forte added, “I know the socialists want to control everything. But this is ridiculous. I don’t think anyone is getting indoctrinated by right-wing politics in the back of the cab.”

New York City’s taxicabs are privately owned, with licenses—known as medallions—issued by the city. Last year, Newsmax signed a deal with Curb to provide one-minute news updates hosted by one of the network’s anchors to more than 15,000 taxis nationwide.

Newsmax, launched in 2014, is currently the fourth-largest cable news network in the U.S., behind Fox News. The network reaches about 60 million homes through traditional cable and satellite providers while its streaming channel Newsmax 2 is available to over 100 million users via apps and OTT systems.

Mayor Mamdani, New York’s newly elected Democratic Socialist mayor, has not publicly responded to Hoylman-Sigal’s request as of Friday. City Hall has declined to comment on the matter.

Sandy Fitzgerald, a general assignment writer for Newsmax with over three decades in journalism, reported this story.