That is a question that I have heard asked several times in the last few weeks as we approach this most important, and contentious, election. Stations should be considering how to allocate the purchase price of these long-term contracts to reflect their actual seasonal value – rather than simply booking them as having a flat rate throughout the entire year – including the pre-election lowest unit rate periods. David Oxenford is MAB’s Washington Legal Counsel and provides members with answers to their legal questions with the MAB Legal Hotline. The FEC also has an open proceeding to mandate more stringent sponsorship identification obligations akin to those required on broadcast and local cable political advertising. Political advertising spending has already hit a record $6.7 billion, according to estimates from Advertising Analytics. As in any year, as summer ends, regulatory activity picks up – and this year appears to be no different. … Parties that are fielding at least six candidates in the election will get airtime on free-to-air radio and television channels, explained the Infocomm Media Development Authority (IMDA) in a statement on Wednesday (July 1). Back in August, we highlighted some of the many issues in computing lowest unit charges (or “lowest unit rates”) for political candidates which are in effect during the window for the November elections that went into effect on September 4.
David is a partner at the law firm of Wilkinson Barker Knauer LLP, practicing out of its Washington, DC office. What that means is that noncommercial stations do not have any obligation to sell time to political candidates or to make any free time available to the candidates for their messages. Years ago, reasonable access did apply to noncommercial stations, but when a DC-area congressional candidate used the statutory reasonable access requirements to force a local NPR affiliate (to which many on Capitol Hill listened) to air political commercials, Congress acted to abolish the reasonable access requirement as it applied to noncommercial stations. (c) 2014 MISSOURI BROADCASTERS ASSOCIATION, Complete List of Services & Online Training, First Informer Broadcasters Act/Credential Program, Alternative Broadcast “Mock” Inspection Program, The Insight Edge Advantage (weekly e-newsletter), Broadcasters’ Calendar & Political Windows, 2020 Broadcasters Calendar Pillsbury Advisory. We’ve updated TVB.org for improved speed and navigation. Use the links below the calendar for more details. Here you can find useful information to help in your planning, including key upcoming dates, voter profiles, preferred programming and so much more! For on-air broadcasts, any paid advertisement that conveys a message dealing with any controversial issue of public importance (state or federal) requires at a minimum an on-air sponsorship identification stating that the ad was “paid for” or “sponsored by” the person or organization that paid for the time. These consent decrees were modeled on the ones that were sent in July to six large radio broadcast groups as a result of an earlier FCC review of their political files (see our article here on those consent decrees, which also provides a review of a broadcaster’s political file obligations). Last week, the Congressional Research Service issued a study on the state of the law regarding online political advertising, highlighting the many issues involved in providing more robust political disclosures. Finally, with the election season fast approaching, even stations not in early primary states should start planning. The 2020 election has generated a record $13.3 billion in federal campaign contributions, funding a barrage of political advertising that strategists say risks blurring candidate messaging. Federal candidates have a more extensive obligation for identifying themselves in their ads, particularly if they mention an opposing candidate. Discussion of FCC, copyright, advertising and other legal issues of importance to radio and television broadcasters and other media companies. His regulatory expertise includes all areas of broadcast law including the FCC’s multiple ownership limitations, the political broadcasting rules, EEO policy, advertising issues, and other programming matters and FCC technical rules. Greg Abbott Spends Millions to Help Down-Ballot Republicans in Texas, Flush With Cash, Biden Eclipses Trump in War for the Airwaves, How Biden Destroyed Trump’s TV Ad ‘Death Star’, Political Advertising Spend Hits Record $6.7 Billion, 7 of the 10 Most Expensive Senate Races EVER are Happening Right Now, Pro-Trump Group Rolls Out Another $1M in Ads Targeting Arizona Voters, US Senate High Stakes Spur Astronomical Spending in Montana. Equal opportunities will require that you fit in spots from those late-arriving candidates, so make sure you have sufficient advertising inventory in reserve in the weeks leading up to the election to make room for commercials from these candidates whose funding may not cover ads until late in the primary period. Access information here. By David Oxenford on March 8, 2018. … Online political advertising, however, is much more complicated as there is no single body of law that governs those responsibilities. This post should help alert you to some important dates in September that all stations should keep in mind – and we will also provide a reminder of some of the dates to remember in early October. These are but a few of the political issues that broadcasters should be considering. : 201815023K, the candidates contesting in your constituency, physical rallies are not allowed due to the Covid-19 situation. Bona fide news programming is also exempt from equal time. Continue Reading Sponsorship of Political Advertising On-Air and On-Line – A Video Presentation and a Congressional Research Service Study. As we wrote last year, in cases of substantial noncompliance, the FCC has fined stations that essentially ignored the public file rules. The routine deadlines include those for radio stations in Iowa and Missouri and TV stations in Florida, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands who should be putting the finishing touches on their license renewal applications, to be filed on or before October 1, along with the accompanying EEO program report. Continue Reading More FCC Consent Decrees for Political File Violations – Issues to Watch in the Last Weeks of the Election. While the decrees carry no monetary fine, they do require that the signing station enter into a compliance program – appointing a compliance officer, having a written compliance plan, reporting any violations to the FCC as they occur, and providing a report to the FCC at the end of each calendar year for two years cataloging all political sales and when the required documents went into the political file.… While third-party ads do not get lowest unit rates, these ads can be more problematic than candidate ads as they potentially force stations to be judges of the truth of the content of those ads. If you are having trouble finding content or have any questions, please contact us at. As we wrote back in August, lowest unit charges (or “Lowest Unit Rates”) guarantee that, in the 45 days before a primary and the 60 days before a general election, legally qualified candidates get the lowest rate for a spot that is then running on the station within any class of advertising time running in any particular daypart. Prior to election dates, there are specific political windows that impact advertising rate levels within active markets. For a five-member group representation constituency, for example, the team will get a total of 15 minutes. Some stations are no doubt already selling long-term contracts that will still be in effect during the primary season.
But that is not to say that there could never be a political file obligation for a noncommercial station.… We have also written, here, about issues concerning the content of these third-party ads, as stations can potentially have liability for defamatory content in those ads if the station knows or has reason to believe that the ads are in fact false. [embed]https://www.facebook.com/MediacorpCh5/videos/607384243491310/?__xts__%5B0%5D=68.ARBHO6VtyXXLUcsFXBMB7A9hTYcvQ5QSBD5dNb1crw0EbIr0[/embed]. Calendar Detail: Select an event for polling as well as delegate counts and allocation. In what it is calling a "mid-seven-figure" effort, Governor Abbott’s political campaign is working to save the Republican majority in the state House and make voters aware of judicial races. In many parts of the country, the air is turning crisp, the leaves are changing color, and kids are back in school (in some form), making it the perfect time to get caught up with regulatory dates and deadlines coming in October. The filing window closes Dec. 9.