• Get involved.
    We want your input!
    Apply for Membership and join the conversations about everything related to broadcasting.

    After we receive your registration, a moderator will review it. After your registration is approved, you will be permitted to post.
    If you use a disposable or false email address, your registration will be rejected.

    After your membership is approved, please take a minute to tell us a little bit about yourself.
    https://www.radiodiscussions.com/forums/introduce-yourself.1088/

    Thanks in advance and have fun!
    RadioDiscussions Administrators

Rush Limbaugh to host Trump in "virtual rally"

One would think it should. All of the town halls done on the broadcast networks have equal time. ABC did one with Trump, and they're going to do one with Biden.

Here's the rule:

The federal equal time rule requires broadcasters to treat a candidate for the same political office identically to every other candidate for that office. If a radio or television station sells air time to one candidate, the rule states that it must offer to sell the same amount of time to other candidates for that office.

I find it interesting that the president is willing to do a virtual rally when he's speaking to his base. But not willing to do a virtual debate when he has to face the opposition.
 
Theoretically, Jo Jorgensen, Kanye and every other qualified minority candidate could ask for 3 hours. I'm going to guess not buried overnight either.


TheBigA said:
One would think it should. All of the town halls done on the broadcast networks have equal time. ABC did one with Trump, and they're going to do one with Biden.

Here's the rule:

The federal equal time rule requires broadcasters to treat a candidate for the same political office identically to every other candidate for that office. If a radio or television station sells air time to one candidate, the rule states that it must offer to sell the same amount of time to other candidates for that office.

I find it interesting that the president is willing to do a virtual rally when he's speaking to his base. But not willing to do a virtual debate when he has to face the opposition.
Click to expand...
 
gr8oldies said:
Theoretically, Jo Jorgensen, Kanye and every other qualified minority candidate could ask for 3 hours. I'm going to guess not buried overnight either.
Click to expand...

Equal time means EQUAL time. At the same time of day.

People were wondering why the RNC has been canceling ad buys around the country. They're counting on the media to give them free time, as they did in 2016.

All of those Fox News interviews he does need to be matched. If I'm a DNC lawyer, I'm just watching, and I'll make my complaint at the end of October.
 
Did iHeart/Premiere lay off all of their lawyers?


TheBigA said:
Equal time means EQUAL time. At the same time of day.

People were wondering why the RNC has been canceling ad buys around the country. They're counting on the media to give them free time, as they did in 2016.

All of those Fox News interviews he does need to be matched. If I'm a DNC lawyer, I'm just watching, and I'll make my complaint at the end of October.
Click to expand...
 
gr8oldies said:
Did iHeart/Premiere lay off all of their lawyers?
Click to expand...

The equal time rule applies to licensees. So any affiliate of Rush needs to be aware of this before they choose to air this show tomorrow.

The stations, not Rush, are responsible. They are opening their stations to potential liability.
 
Definietly aware that it's the licensees issue, and the brunt of any consequences rests solely on them, however the parent of the syndicator holds a considerable number of these licenses, and you would think a syndicator would not try to get their affiliates in trouble. PDs and GMs would have the unhappy thought of a bunch of very POed MAGAts if they pulled the show, and having to give up some prime time to the Biden campaign between now and November 3





TheBigA said:
The equal time rule applies to licensees. So any affiliate of Rush needs to be aware of this before they choose to air this show tomorrow.

The stations, not Rush, are responsible. They are opening their stations to potential liability.
Click to expand...
 
TheBigA said:
All of those Fox News interviews he does need to be matched. If I'm a DNC lawyer, I'm just watching, and I'll make my complaint at the end of October.
Click to expand...

My understanding is that Fox has attempted many times via most of their hosts to get Biden and Harris on their shows, with no acceptance.

Remember, the same rule goes for MSNBC and CNN.

However, there is a difference, legally, between a news item and a campaign speech.

Any network or channel that carries a campaign speech all or in part may consider it to be a news item. I have seen Fox carry almost complete Biden appearances (as few as they have been) as news stories. Yes, they interrupt to comment or snark, but they carry some. In fact, I was looking for Bident's first speech out of his home a couple of weeks ago, and while neither of the Blue networks were carrying it, Fox was, although with in and out snippets.
 
DavidEduardo said:
My understanding is that Fox has attempted many times via most of their hosts to get Biden and Harris on their shows, with no acceptance.

Remember, the same rule goes for MSNBC and CNN.

However, there is a difference, legally, between a news item and a campaign speech.

Any network or channel that carries a campaign speech all or in part may consider it to be a news item. I have seen Fox carry almost complete Biden appearances (as few as they have been) as news stories. Yes, they interrupt to comment or snark, but they carry some. In fact, I was looking for Bident's first speech out of his home a couple of weeks ago, and while neither of the Blue networks were carrying it, Fox was, although with in and out snippets.
Click to expand...
There's only one "Blue" network and it's been gone since 1943! :)
 
semoochie said:
There's only one "Blue" network and it's been gone since 1943! :)
Click to expand...

Ah, but Fox is the new Red network and those other two are the Blue webs of today!
 
Not long ago, during one of the President's phone-ins, he said "I'll be here every Monday". One of the hosts, hastily replied, "and we also invite
Joe Biden to call in". saving Fox's bacon.

Yes, you can cover a campaign event. Candidate comes to your town, and radio or TV covers it, no foul. (If the opposing candidate comes to town it's a good idea to do the same thing.)

The issue is the Limbaugh show hosting the campaign event, and expecting all the affiliates to carry it free




DavidEduardo said:
My understanding is that Fox has attempted many times via most of their hosts to get Biden and Harris on their shows, with no acceptance.

Remember, the same rule goes for MSNBC and CNN.

However, there is a difference, legally, between a news item and a campaign speech.

Any network or channel that carries a campaign speech all or in part may consider it to be a news item. I have seen Fox carry almost complete Biden appearances (as few as they have been) as news stories. Yes, they interrupt to comment or snark, but they carry some. In fact, I was looking for Bident's first speech out of his home a couple of weeks ago, and while neither of the Blue networks were carrying it, Fox was, although with in and out snippets.
Click to expand...
 
gr8oldies said:
The issue is the Limbaugh show hosting the campaign event, and expecting all the affiliates to carry it free
Click to expand...

It's basically a free commercial. The campaign is canceling radio and TV ad buys, and instead depending on free media to motivate their base.

Radio stations are depending on political ads to make up for an otherwise disastrous year. Now even political ads are going away.
 
TheBigA said:
The equal time rule applies to licensees. So any affiliate of Rush needs to be aware of this before they choose to air this show tomorrow.

The stations, not Rush, are responsible. They are opening their stations to potential liability.
Click to expand...

I doubt too much will come of it. Biden speaking to conservative talk audiences? Not likely. Why would he waste his time?
 
boombox4 said:
I doubt too much will come of it. Biden speaking to conservative talk audiences? Not likely. Why would he waste his time?
Click to expand...

That's not the point. The fact that Rush is giving free time away to only one candidate.

But it does open the door for Biden to do the same thing on NPR or all-news stations with no restrictions.
 
TheBigA said:
That's not the point. The fact that Rush is giving free time away to only one candidate.

But it does open the door for Biden to do the same thing on NPR or all-news stations with no restrictions.
Click to expand...

Again, there have been reports of candidates such as for the Presidency and Vice Presidency as well as House and Senate seats being invited to polarized talk shows and refusing if the host is not "sympathetic" to their agenda.

"Equal time" does not obligate candidates to make use of the privilege.

To use an extreme example, I think Tucker Carlson would be delighted to have Kamala Harris on his show. On the other hand, I don't think she would find value in accepting an invitation.
 
Status
This thread has been closed due to inactivity. You can create a new thread to discuss this topic.


Back
Top Bottom