*

Ferguson eyes tackling online censorship of conservatives

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FTC under Khan became a political flashpoint

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Ferguson could shift course in FTC cases against Amazon ( AMZN )

and Meta

(Adds that Trump nominated Mark Meador as FTC commissioner in

paragraphs 4-6, context on Ferguson in paragraphs 7, 9, and 13

context on DOJ appointment in paragraph 17)

By Jody Godoy

NEW YORK, Dec 10 (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Donald

Trump tapped Federal Trade Commissioner Andrew Ferguson to lead

the consumer protection and antitrust agency, Trump said on

social media on Tuesday.

Ferguson, one of two Senate-confirmed Republican FTC

commissioners appointed by President Joe Biden, will be "the

most America First, and pro-innovation FTC Chair in our

Country's History," Trump said.

"Andrew has a proven record of standing up to Big Tech

censorship, and protecting Freedom of Speech in our Great

Country," Trump said on his Truth Social platform.

Trump said in a separate post that he would nominate Mark

Meador, a partner at law firm Kressin Meador Powers and former

antitrust counsel to Republican U.S. Senator Mike Lee, to become

an FTC commissioner.

Lee previously proposed legislation that would remove

federal antitrust authority from the FTC, which shares it with

the U.S. Department of Justice.

Once confirmed, Meador would fill the spot currently

occupied by FTC Chair Lina Khan, whose term on the commission

has expired.

Ferguson, Virginia's former solicitor general, wants the FTC

to investigate censorship of conservative viewpoints online. If

social media platforms collaborate to suppress such views or

advertisers coordinate pulling business from platforms such as

Elon Musk's X, they should be charged with violating U.S.

antitrust law, Ferguson has said.

"We must vigorously enforce the antitrust laws against any

platforms found to be unlawfully limiting Americans' ability to

exchange ideas freely and openly," Ferguson said in a recent

statement.

Ferguson previously served as counsel to Republican Senator

Mitch McConnell and clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice

Clarence Thomas.

The agency became a political flashpoint under Khan, who

promoted antitrust enforcement as a check on corporate power.

Her efforts won fans among some Republicans, including incoming

Vice President JD Vance, but drew criticism as overly aggressive

from some antitrust lawyers and business groups.

Ferguson would inherit a full slate of cases against Big

Tech companies, a lawsuit against the three largest pharmacy

benefit managers, and at least a half-dozen lawsuits by

companies arguing the FTC has outstripped its authority.

It is unclear whether he would continue with unfinished

probes, including into practices at Microsoft ( MSFT ) that

competitors have complained keep customers from switching to

other cloud service providers, and potential privacy concerns

involving OpenAI.

In other enforcement matters related to AI and privacy,

Ferguson has said he believes Khan and the FTC's Democratic

majority have sometimes led the agency to overstep its

authority.

A Republican-led FTC could also shift course in two major

cases against Amazon.com ( AMZN ). One targets tactics the

agency says keep sellers bound to its platform and help Amazon ( AMZN )

unlawfully dominate the landscape for online marketplaces, and

another over practices allegedly meant to trick Prime

subscribers out of cancelling service.

Ferguson would also oversee a case brought against Meta

Platforms ( META ), then known as Facebook, in 2020, during

Trump's first term.

The agency is seeking to unwind the tech company's

acquisition of Instagram and WhatsApp. But the judge overseeing

the case has cast doubt on whether the agency can prevail at

trial in April.

Trump said last week that he would appoint Vance adviser

Gail Slater to lead the DOJ's antitrust division, which is

overseeing cases against Google.