Get Your Political Files Ready

12-12-14

MultiChannel News reports FCC Chairman Tom Wheeler has the votes he needs to require radio stations to post political files online in an FCC database. Currently, only TV is required to file. In August the Commission asked for input on whether that should be extended to radio, cable, and satellite. And late last month Wheeler circlulated the item to the other commissioners and received two other votes (from Democrats) meaning he now has the majority needed to have the item approved. We asked broadcast attorney John Garziglia when radio stations might need to be ready to file online.

Garziglia says, "It is almost a foregone conclusion that the FCC will continue to propose online public files for radio stations asking for comment on specific proposals for putting radio public files online.  There will be several months for comments and reply comments. It is possible that the FCC could quickly rush out a new online public file rule for radio sometime in the first few months of 2015.  But, since the predominate force behind requiring online public files is a desire for political file availability without personal visits to stations, the more likely time schedule is an adoption of radio online public file rules in some form to be effective for the 2016 election season. So, we can expect to see a Notice of Proposed Rule Making from the FCC for radio, cable and satellite TV online local public files shortly with the effective date of any rule change still some months in the future."

When this does go into effect the radio industry is hopeful the Commission will give smaller stations, with few employees, some leeway on what needs to be posted. MultiChannel News says this item becomes official as soon as the Republicans vote. Because there are already three votes, the clock is now running on the other two. It eventually becomes official whether they vote or not.

(12/12/2014 8:14:11 AM)
Blame "Citizens United." Leftists can't stand the idea that groups besides the ever-loyal unions are allowed to advertise in elections. Note the "sunshine Group" who keeps pressing for requirements for PACs to list all contributors in their spots (impossibility, of course, so the spots would be forced off the air).

The cost of keeping up w/political posting requirements will be an incentive to dump all political ads except for what the national candidates can steal from us.

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Radio's Competition For Political Ad Revenue Increases

8-20-14

More and more radio companies have been looking at political season, and the local, regional and national campaigns election day produces, to bolster flat revenue numbers. Some companies have even hired political specialists to work that business, hoping to grab as many of those dollars as possible. The arena for 2014 political dollars just became a little more crowded thanks to modern technology. DirecTV and The Dish Network are about to battle broadcasters for the a piece of what's expected to be about $3 Billion in political advertising spending later this year. The Satellite providers have been unable to attract any of that revenue in the past because they could not target local ads. That's all about to change.

Dish's senior vice president of media sales Warren Schlichting tells the Los Angeles Times says his company has built a better mousetrap. "Broadcasters have had this market to themselves because they could offer that local reach." New digital technology is helping both Satellite providers match voter registration information with subscriber homes, and are now offering political campaigns the ability to send targeted ads to select households.

Schlichting says, "If they are a satellite TV subscriber, then we can send an ad directly to their house. Just like in the past when people sent a mailer to your home. Now we are mailing a 30-second spot directly to a person's digital video recorder." The Time says, until recently, there weren't enough homes that received digital TV transmissions to make customized ads economically feasible on a large scale. Political ad spending is expected to top $3 Billion in 2014.

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Former Gov. Used Show for Political Gain

7-9-14
That's what federal prosecutors plan to tell a jury about former Connecticut Governor John Rowland who hosted  show on CBS owned WTIC-AM up until he was indicted. The Hartford Courant reports the government says Rowland took money to use his show to bully political opponents. Prosecutors allege Rowland took the money from former congressional candidate Lisa Wilson-Foley and her husband and financial backer, Brian Foley, and went on the air and attacked Foley's opponents. Rowland was hired by WTIC after being convicted of corruption back in 2004.

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Political To Blame For Beasley Q4 Drop

1-30-14

In 2012, Beasley took in $1.2 million in Q4 political revenue and that couldn't be made up amongst the 44 stations the company owns. CEO George Beasley said, ?While we were not able to fully offset the cyclical impact of political revenue, the fourth quarter radio advertising environment in our markets remains healthy and on an actual basis we reported just a slight decline in net revenue compared with last year." Excluding political, Beasley Q4 same-station revenue was up 2 percent. For the year, same-station revenue was up nearly 2 percent.

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No Political Money For Pubcasters

12-3-13

A federal appeals court has upheld a federal ban on paid commercial, political, and issue advertising on public radio and TV stations. The Monday ruling overturned a lower panel?s decision that would have permitted paid political and issue advertising. It surely would have brought in millions of dollars to public broadcasters and, perhaps, siphoned some money away from commercial stations.

In the ruling, Judge Margaret McKeown wrote, ?Congress recognized that advertising would change the character of public broadcast programming and undermine the intended distinction between commercial and noncommercial broadcasting."

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Clear Channel Eyes More Political Revenue

10-17-13

Clear Channel has hired political operatives Will Leaverton and Brice Kornegay as Vice Presidents of Political Strategy, effective immediately. The company says, Leaverton and Kornegay will develop and execute "Go To Market" strategies for various outlets in the political marketplace using Clear Channel's local and national on air, digital, mobile, live event and outdoor assets.

Leaverton joins Clear Channel from the Bill Thompson Mayoral Campaign. Kornegay joins Clear Channel from BK Strategies, where he served as President since 2012. They will report directly to Nathan Daschle, Executive Vice President of Political Strategy and will be stationed out of Washington, D.C.

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Clear Channel Creates New Political Position

6-17-13

Today Clear Channel announced the hiring of political strategist and lawyer Nathan Daschle as Executive VP for Political Strategy. It's a newly created position in which Daschle will focus on bringing political dollars to Clear Channel. He'll report directly to John Hogan. Daschle joins Clear Channel from Ruck.us, a social network that connects politically like-minded people so they can share ideas and take action, where he is founder and CEO.

Daschle will develop and oversee a Washington, D.C.-based team for Clear Channel that will focus on working with political and issue advertisers and advertising agencies to develop custom strategies and campaigns using the Clear Channel properties.

Daschle is the son of Tom Daschle, former U.S. Senator from South Dakota, and former U.S. Senate Majority Leader.

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Political Pushes Cumulus Positive

3-18-13

Cumulus reported net revenues for the three months ended December 31, 2012 increased $2.9 million, or 1.0 percent, to $284.2 million, compared to $281.3 million for the three months ended December 31, 2011. The increase was due to political advertising. Cumulus CEO Lew Dickey said the three strongest categories for Cumulus in Q4 were Auto, Real Estate, and Banking.

Dickey also said pacing in the first quarter is down about 2% with January and February down 3% each and March looking a little better. He said consumer spending was "lethargic," with advertisers deferring orders, especially at the network level. In the second quarter, Dickey says, pacing is up about 5% with network business still pacing negative.

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Political Helps Univision Gain 7.3% in Q4

2-21-13

$5.6 Million in Q4 political revenue helped Univision gain 7.3% compared to the same quarter in 2011. When you back out political, Univision is as flat as the radio industry as a whole, up only 1% for the quarter. Univision took in $89.1 Million in revenue in the fourth quarter of 2012. And, also in stride with others reporting, Univision is pacing up in the low single digits in Q1 of this year.

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Political Comes In Big For Radio One

2-20-13

When you back out political advertising, the Radio One radio division was still up by 2.9 percent. In Q4 Radio One net revenue was $60.2 million compared to $55 million in Q4 of 2011. In Q4 Radio One took in $5.9 million in political advertising. For the year, the $9.1 million in political advertising is the most in company history and more than twice what the company budgeted for. Retail, Government, and Telecom were Radio One's biggest categories in Q4. Auto also did well.

Reach Media's net revenues decreased 20.9 percent in the fourth quarter 2012 compared to the same period in 2011. The company says that was partially due to changes to certain Reach Media's affiliate agreements as well as "advertisers who deferred spending during the quarter." Net revenues for THE Radio One Internet business increased 7.7 percent for the three months ended December 31, 2012 compared to the same period in 2011.

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The Impact Of Political Paralysis on Radio

11-9-2012
Depression set in as I started listening to conference calls from radio companies this quarter. Business is either flat or off -- way off. Most CEOs shared their reasoning on why the third quarter was so weak, but Ed Christian at Saga said what others probably wanted to say: "I have no idea why it's off." The flat quarter was simply unexpected.

Last year at our Forecast conference, all the group heads predicted a boom in advertising as a result of political spending. That didn't happen, and now everyone is scratching their heads. On top of that, regular business is off, which also has everyone wondering what happened. Though some stations (especially political Talk radio) saw added spending, the expected broad spending did not occur.

My belief is that political spending in radio was down for three reasons:

Swing state focus: National campaigns understand that politics at the national level is to a large degree predictable -- for example, California is always going to vote Democratic, and Texas is always going to vote Republican. The money, it appears, went to the swing states, like Wisconsin, Ohio, and Florida.

Glut of television inventory: Sad to say, but candidates often select television over radio, and only increase their spending in radio when TV is sold out. Because there was a glut of inventory in the television industry, those candidates needing more airtime were not forced to shift to radio.

Stealth media is more important than ever: Many were surprised at the outcome of the national election because the polls were extremely tight in the final days, and several appeared to be favoring the Republican nominee. Though the Obama campaign did all the usual, visible things, they also spent a tremendous amount of money on the invisible. They masterfully executed an Internet strategy and a data strategy that weren't easily understood or accounted for by the media and pollsters. More and more candidates are spending enormous amounts of campaign money on "stealth" Internet campaigns.

That may explain why political spending shifted away from radio. But why is non-political down?

It's easy to blame it on the economy, which of course is part of the problem. But that's been a problem for years now. So why the sudden drop in spending? I call it "political paralysis."

In the months before an election, there is naturally a dramatic increase in political rhetoric in the media. As each party demonizes the other and works to increase the level of fear about what will happen if their candidate is not elected, business owners start to take notice. When their fear increases, their spending decreases. A month after the election, things go back to normal.

In the 2010 election, I saw it in one of my other businesses. About four months before the election, the rhetoric was high and advertisers stopped spending, but they didn't say why. We started asking and they all said, "We've decided to wait to see the outcome of the election before we spend any money." This was happening with both Democratic- and Republican-leaning advertisers. Their fear and uncertainty paralyzed them.

Before this election, we were ready with a strategy to lock up business further in advance and to offer answers that helped advertisers overcome their paralysis -- though we still saw some effects, especially in the last 30 days before the election.

My guess is that local radio advertisers were holding back until they were certain of what was going to happen. Even though half didn't see their candidate win, they will soon realize that life goes on, and business needs to advertise.

I also believe other advertisers want to avoid the noise. When political ads dominate the airwaves, advertisers don't want to be on the air for fear of not standing out. More ads mean more clutter. I personally got so tired of the political ads that I stopped watching television until the election was over.

Are there other reasons radio is off? Probably. But I think you'll find these are the biggest drivers of the reductions in this past quarter. At this stage, the most important thing you can do is get face-to-face with advertisers, get them back in the game, have answers ready to overcome their concerns if they are smarting about the outcome of the election, and make them understand that if they fear their business will go backward, it's more important than ever to increase visibility to get more customers in the door.

Also: Mark your calendars, and in the future, put your political paralysis strategy into play long before the campaigning begins.

Radio will be back. Though we can analyze it to death or wonder if there is some other reason we suddenly experienced a drop, understand that life goes on after elections and this temporary setback will end. Christmas is upon us, and advertisers need to play catch-up for those customers they lost by not advertising in the last quarter. I suspect radio will rebound to normal levels in the fourth quarter.

Eric Rhoads

PS: We'll have a chance to ask advertisers about these issues at our Forecast conference, on November 28 at the Harvard Club in New York. We have some of the most powerful advertisers in the world appearing on panels, and we can get their take on some of these ideas. Check out our agenda HERE

(11/9/2012 10:15:04 PM)
American media just experienced the most expensive, ad-deluged process in the history of any democracy.
Radio got the short end of that stick and it wasn't because there was a lottery.
There was every opportunity for radio to take a "creative resource"-role, but now I'm the one talking gibberish.
Radio has already wiped out its creative departments and impoverished the medium even more.
If radio was really "our baby", we would be charged with child abuse... and the penalties would be extremely harsh.
The whining, meanwhile, is pathetic.
(11/9/2012 4:01:48 PM)
Thdere are so many more advertising options available to retailers, compared to 15 years ago. And the radio "product" is very different now. The big players like CBS and Clear Channel, essentially control the major markets. They are committed to maximizing shareholder value and profits, and have dumbed down many of their stations, with voice tracking, cluster breaks, reduced commissions, and more. How all this impacts their customers (advertisers) or their employees, is of no concern to them.
(11/9/2012 10:21:02 AM)
Sellers are discouraged. Management is beat down - THERE IS ZERO excitement anymore. No one wants to be in radio they are stuck in radio.
(11/9/2012 8:38:59 AM)
I have spent most of my 30+ year career moving between politics and radio, so I see this from both sides of the fence. Most political professionals believe that television works better than radio.

However, the future of political marketing involves tightly targeted niches. The Bush people started this trend in 2004, but used it mostly on direct mail. Obama's two campaigns have expanded the concept. They bought a lot of cable in the last cycle, buying shows that might have had low ratings, but which were extremely efficient at reaching the populations they needed to reach, while the Romney people and the Republicans spent their money the old-fashioned way...1000s of GRPs on mass buys...most of which was completely wasted.

I believe that radio should be in this game, because radio could do the same job as cable even more efficiently and with less cost, but radio does not know how to sell itself anymore, and it does not have the data tools to show campaigns how well it reaches small slices of the population like non-white single mothers who make less than $35k per year or Hispanic entrepreneurs. Nor does it really understand how to educate campaigns on how radio supplements television or direct mail.

(11/9/2012 8:17:35 AM)
Television, to the degree the candidate can afford it, gets at least some production values.
Over the years, I have voiced numerous radio ads for American candidates (non-accented, midwestern sound), and the copy I was compelled to read was beyond atrocious. There were no production values or imaginative approaches either - just insulting gibberish.
But then, that's how we roll on a day-to-day basis anyway.
Radio isn't losing its credibility, Eric. It's throwing it away.

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Cumulus Misses Political Projection By A Mile

11-5-2012

Cumulus had given Wall Street guidance that it would see a 20 percent increase in political spending for the third quarter of 2012. Monday, the company reported a 10 percent decline for the quarter, compared to the 2010 political spending season. Cumulus CEO Lew Dickey blamed the miss on the economy that allowed television to pull in more political dollars. "The general softness in the economy reached a crescendo in September helping TV clear more political, a lot more than they normally would have. Political was an excellent windfall for our friends in television." Dickey also said digital -- especially social media -- took a share of the political dollars this year. "We assumed we would maintain our share. In reality radio's share declined."

(11/6/2012 5:21:51 PM)
HD Radio losers!
(11/5/2012 1:01:08 PM)
He didnt go after it.

His staff was too worried about forcing everyone to focus on CSOS and cold calls to small businesses that have no radio dollars.

He focused his staff on crap that didnt matter and missed the elephant in the room.

Brutal miscalcuations continue for Senior Dickey and Pinch (BTW When is he retiring...alot of Cumulus problems are caused by Jon Pinch)

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Ryvicker Ups Political Spending Estimates

9-5-2012

Managing Director of Equity Research for Wells Fargo Marci Ryvicker has issued a new research report that increases the amount of money she expects to be spent in media on political advertising. The new report still has television taking the bulk of the dollars (65%) jumping from $3.2 billion to $3.37 billion. Radio's share remained at 5.2% in Ryvicker's updated report, behind TV, Direct Mail (18%) and the Internet (6%). The total radio share is now expected to be $270 million for radio. Ryvicker estimates a total of $5.2 billion will be spent on political advertising in 2012.

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(TALENT) 5 Programming Tips For The Political Season

8-20-2012

By Brian Holt

Political season is upon us, and News/Talk shows and stations are gearing up for one of the busiest news- and revenue-generating cycles for the format.

While it may seem obvious to some that wall-to-wall coverage after the conventions is the way to go, to others, that's the last thing you want to do. I fall in to the latter camp. The good news is you will have plenty of added content to choose from.
Whether it's today's storyline of the GOP's VEEP choice and what it means for the race, or great audio of the vice president telling a group of mostly African-Americans that Romney's plan will "put y?all back in chains," the stories, audio, and supporting video for your website are endless.

Your programming decisions during this time should be based on striking a balance between meeting the expectation to educate and inform while not forgetting to entertain and offer a hideaway from the endless political browbeating. As the national, state and local media begins to bombard your audience, think of your show as being no different from a campaign robo-call during dinner: Yes, you can be informative but you can also be overkill, annoying, and too one-sided.

Going into the election months, here are some tips:

1. Produce For The Segment Of Your Audience That Is Not Hyper-Political
One of the more important things to remember during the election months of September and October, especially in a presidential election year, is to produce or program for the segment of your audience (which may be larger than you think) that is NOT hyper-political. Even a News/Talk audience which is generally informed and interested in the political spin cycle does not want a 24/7 Fox News show shouting how the president can do no right. Nor are they seeking an overload of unfounded claims that the Tea Party Express "is coming to get you."  What people are searching for -- if they are being honest -- is honesty in a just-the-right-amount dose.

2. Broaden Your Programming
You are likely to be sampled more during this time by new or occasional tune-ins. This a great opportunity to showcase your many talents and not just the political animal in you. Women who are more inclined to prefer music over news may also be inclined to stick around or come back if you remember to feature programming targeting broader issues that matter to them.

For example, take the recent news of U.S. Representative Jesse Jackson Jr.'s struggles with bipolar disorder and whether or not he is fit to serve. We decided to broaden the topic to better understand the disorder with a leading university psychiatrist. Then, we took it deeper by exploring the question: "How can you spot a teen in trouble who may or may not be bipolar?" This was targeted for the many parents - and women in particular - who may be struggling with the demons of teenage/college life. You need not look further than the Aurora, Colorado, massacre to know that some parents have had this issue on their minds recently.

3. Explore The Local Issues
If you are live and local, you have the advantage of being able to cover local political issues and candidates. They are more likely to immediately, and perhaps more directly, affect your audience than the national election. Tackle those ballot propositions. Book your local candidates running for office and have both sides on for a debate. A good debate moderated by an informed and entertaining host can make for good radio. Get at the truth. Take no prisoners. And deliver your audience what they are begging for: truth wrapped in informed entertainment. Just know where and when to ditch the politics for the fun, and the other news of the day.

4. Stay On Top Of The Day's Big Political Story
Another helpful reminder is not to shy away from returning to the big political story of the day. Take a breather and separate an hour or two with very different content. Just remember to tease and time stamp when you plan to return to it. This time a fresh angle may come to you, a new guest idea - or not. But if it's the story everyone is talking about you don't want to appear to be out of touch, so return to it and let the listeners tuning in just for that story know that you are on top of it.
5. Go Big

Land an interview with either the President, VP, or the GOP candidates. If your show is in a swing state (Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida, Wisconsin, Nevada, Colorado, etc.) the campaigns are saturating these markets with media and they ARE having the candidates do radio. It may be a long shot but don't let that stop you. Imagine the press you'll receive.

Below is contact information for both national campaign headquarters, but it's best to call your local campaign office and work your way through the back door. Those folks are likely more aware of your show and its value. They can then be an advocate for pitching the national communications office to get it on the calendar. Ask to speak with the media relations/communications representative and pitch 'em hard on why an appearance on your show would benefit the campaign. If the candidates are not available, then ask for a high-profile surrogate. Go for it!

- Romney Believe in America: 857-288-3500.
- Obama for America: 312-698-3670

Brian Holt works for The Randy Lane Company as a Talent Coach.

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(LEGAL) Do You Need File Political Rates Online?

4-19-2012

There's a lot of discussion between TV and the government about political rates and filing those rates online with a TV station's public file. TV is worried about posting the rates for everyone to see and their is also concern about the possibility of collusion. So we asked broadcast attorney John Garziglia the following question: What should radio stations know about getting political rate information in an online public file?

The FCC?s upcoming anticipated rule change for television stations to post online the station?s political file, including the rates at which political ads were sold, was a significant subject of discussion at the just concluded NAB convention. 

The FCC is expected at its upcoming April 27, 2012 meeting to issue new television local public file requirements.  The new TV regulations are expected to require the information in a TV station?s local public file that is not now already available on the FCC?s website be uploaded to the FCC?s website, rather than being kept in a paper local public file at the station?s main studio. 

Of particular concern to TV broadcasters is the anticipated FCC requirement for an online disclosure of rate information.  Broadcasters are concerned that posting the lowest unit charges at which political time is sold will enable a compilation of commercially sensitive rate information which will adversely affect the television advertising marketplace.  Indeed, advertisers having access to a database of what is the lowest unit charge for each station?s classes of time cannot do anything other than artificially fix rates and distort the marketplace as the reported rates will fail to reflect quantity purchases as a metric of price. 

Thankfully, at least for now and likely for the upcoming election season, online political files are a television issue, not a radio issue.  While it is likely that sooner or later, the FCC will require that radio broadcasters likewise put radio local public files online, for now, there is now no requirement to do so.  There is likewise no restriction against a radio station putting its local public file online if desired, provided that a computer terminal is made available by which members of the public may access that online political file. 

As the political season amps up and radio stations hopefully enjoy some of the political ad dollars that will be spent by candidates and political action committees, it is useful to review some of the FCC?s political file requirements.  First of all, the FCC expects that radio stations will immediately put into a station?s political file all requests made for political broadcast time.  Although the FCC has not defined precisely what ?immediately? means, with the time for opposing candidates to request equal opportunities being seven days, immediately likely means the same day of the candidate ad buy or request for time, or first thing the next morning at the very latest. 

The information required to be immediately put into the political file regarding requests for political time includes the station?s disposition of the request, the charge for broadcast time, the scheduling of the spots, when spots are actually broadcast, the class of time purchased, the candidate?s name, his or her authorized committee name and treasurer?s name.  Similar information for issue ads relating to any political matter of national importance must also be put into the station?s political file, along with the name and contact information for the purchaser, and a listing of its chief executive officers, or a listing of its executive committee or board members as may be applicable.  

While the FCC does not expect that a simple request for rates by a political time buyer be put into the political file, if an inquiry by a candidate?s representative includes a request for available time, that inquiry is probably required to be put into the local public file.  
The public?s knowledge of the existence of a radio station?s local public file has been heightened over the past several months with an encouragement by some public interest groups for members of the public to review a station?s local public file.  The public?s awareness will be raised even more upon the FCC?s anticipated April 27th rule change for TV stations.  Therefore, it is prudent for radio station management to review now with staff its local public file procedures and in particular, procedures for the station?s political file.  If you need to know more about the FCC?s political broadcast regulations, a complete political law manual is available for review, download and printing at www.commlaw.com.

Fore more articles from John Garziglia go HERE
You may also like David Oxenford's BLOG

John F. Garziglia is a Communications Law Attorney with Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice in Washington, DC and can be reached at (202) 857-4455 or jgarziglia@wcsr.com. Have a question for our "Ask The Attorney" feature? Send to edryan@radioink.com.

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Pandora Hires Political Ad Director

April 16, 2012

Pandora hires Rena Shapiro in the role of director/political advertising sales, to "evangelize and educate political advertisers on the massive scale and reach that Pandora offers to campaigns." Pandora claims 51 million active users.

Shapiro has served as director/political and issue advocacy accounts at AOL and is also a veteran of Google. In her new role at Pandora, she'll also help manage the company's political strategy as well as its ad team's footprint in Washington, DC.

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Borrell Says Big Political Money On The Way

3-10-2012

It's what many broadcasters have been waiting for to give radio that much needed revenue kick-in-the-pants. A study released by Borrell and Associates predicts that nearly $10 Billion will be spend on political advertising in the traditional media. "All media will see double digit increases as candidates blast their messages across the airwaves, mailboxes, the Internet and front yards." Borrell says that a large amount will be spent by presidential candidates and more than 13,000 other state and local contests will vie for air time and ad space. "In all $1 of $25 spent on advertising in 2012 will support political contest, issue or point of view. So where is Borrell predicting radio fits into the mix?

Broadcast TV will receive the bulk of the political advertising pie with 57% according to the Borrell study. A distant second will be cable with 9.5%, followed by radio with 8.3% then telemarketing with 7.7% and newspaper with 7.1%. Borrell says the Internet will see 1.5% this year. The total dollar amount to be spent on radio in 2012, according to the Borrell study, is $819 Million compared to broadcast TV which will see $5.6 Billion.

(3/9/2012 8:28:31 PM)
And somehow no one sees anything the slightest bit wrong with this state of affairs. . .

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(LEGAL) What About Untruthful Political Ads

by David Oxenford

Political speech has been called the "life-breath of democracy" by the US Supreme Court and receives very strong First Amendment protection.  For that reason, the FCC has said that it will "not attempt to judge the truth or falsity of material broadcast regarding candidates or ballot issues."  That principle is sure to be tested in the wave of negative campaign ads we are likely to see between now and November, many of which will generate "cease and desist" letters from the subjects of those negative ads. Of course, broadcasters and cable operators alike are immune from liability for anything said in the context of a candidate "use" featuring a sponsoring candidate's recognizable voice or image...the so-called "no censorship" rule.
There is, however, one type of political ad that could create potential liability for the media if allowed to run unchecked:  A third party or PAC attack ad that is defamatory. A defamatory ad is one that exposes the candidate to public hatred, shame, disgrace or ridicule.  Generally, these are ads that allege crime, fraud, dishonest or immoral conduct on the part of the candidate.  Truth is the only absolute defense to a defamatory claim.  Therefore, when defamation is alleged, substantiation should be requested.  Read on for details of a recent case study....

An opinion released several weeks ago by the US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit sheds some light on whether statements made in the context of a third party political ad are defamatory.  The ad at issue there was a negative campaign ad against a candidate for the Maine State Senate.  The ad stated that the candidate, as a town selectman (equivalent to city council) "voted to cancel the $10,000 fireworks celebration for the Fourth of July," while also "[giving] 10,000 taxpayer dollars to a political organization."  The ad then stated that "It's wrong for [the candidate] to give your money to a political organization, and it was wrong for [him] to cancel your 4th of July celebration."
The candidate claimed that the word "wrong" implied that he had committed a crime and that the words "political organization" implied that it was the candidate's own organization, therefore implying that he had stolen town funds for his own organization.  The court disagreed and granted the defendant's motion to dismiss. Why?
First, the court held that a political candidate is "public" figure.  In order for a statement to be defamatory against a public figure, the statement must be made with "actual malice," which means that it must be made with knowledge of falsity or with "reckless disregard for the truth."  The court held that this standard could not be met here because the word "wrong" does not necessarily mean that the candidate broke the law.  Although the court did not elaborate on this, the word "wrong" is often used to convey the speaker's opinion rather than as a statement of fact.  In other words, in a political ad, one party often believes that what the other party does is "wrong," even though it is neither criminal nor immoral. A statement presented as an opinion generally is not defamatory.
The court also refused to draw the inference that the "political organization" referred to in the ad was the candidate's own organization.  In essence, the entire ad was an opinion that the candidate's use of $10,000 would have been better spent on fireworks rather than on a political organization of any kind, and there is nothing defamatory about that allegation/opinion.
In this particular case, the court also found that the allegations were true, which is an absolute defense to defamation, as noted above.  However, for purposes of ruling on the motion to dismiss, the court viewed the allegations in the most favorable light to the plaintiff (the non-dismissing party) and still found that the statements were not defamatory, even if untrue.
The lesson to be learned is that political speech is subject to strong First Amendment protection.  Most of the negative ads do not need to be taken down, even if you get a cease and desist letter.  You may need to be concerned if the statements made are potentially defamatory, charging that a candidate has committed a crime or an immoral or unethical act.  And you should request substantiation of any potentially defamatory claims made in the ad.  But merely stating that a candidate did something "wrong" does not necessarily imply criminality or unethical behavior.  It may simply be "wrong" in the eyes of the advertiser, and that is a mere opinion.
Of course, if there is any question about the content of a political ad, you should consult with legal counsel.  This is one area where it is better to be safe than sorry.

Oxenford is a partner in Davis Wright Tremaine's Washington, DC office. He has represented broadcasters for over 25 years on a wide array of matters from purchases and sales of broadcast properties and the negotiation of programming agreements to regulatory matters.

Read his blog HERE

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Political Comps From 2010 A Challenge For Journal

2-23-2012

The 4th quarter of 2010 was a strong year for political advertising. The 4th quarter of 2011, not so much. That took its toll on Journal, however, the company was still able to show revenue growth from its 33 radio stations. In Q4 radio revenue at Journal increased 2.3% to $19.3 million from $18.9 million. Radio political and issue advertising revenue in Q4 of 2011 was $100,000 compared to $700,000 in 2010. Excluding political and issue advertising, radio revenue increased 5.5%.

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Conclave Webinar Focuses On Political Rules For Radio

2-15-2012

Candidates, SuperPacs, and radio?a trifecta for trouble. Just what are the rules for radio in this politically charged year or any year? Gregg Skall (pictured) of the law firm of Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice is an expert in political broadcasting rules/regulations, and is the featured presenter for the Conclave?s next webinar The Rules of Radio on Wednesday, February 29th at 2PM Central.

Skall will cover the FCC rules that relate to the appearances of political candidates on broadcast media and its use by them to advance their candidacy. Who is a legally recognized candidate by the FCC, what options are available to candidates once their opposition appears on a station, and what qualifies as an appearance are just some of the topics to be covered.

Conclave webinars are free, however preregistration is required via the Conclave?s website at www.theconclave.com.
All Conclave webinars are moderated by Conclave Board Member Jay Philpott, air talent at Hubbard Radio's 106-5 The Arch, WARH/St. Louis.

The Conclave is a 36-year-old 501(c)3 non-profit corporation. The Conclave offers year-round learning to the industry including webinars, TalenTrak, and the Summer Learning Conference ? and has provided nearly $100,000 annually in media scholarships. For more information on the Learning Conference and Conclave educational programs, visit www.theconclave.com.

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