Can I run political ads on a noncom?

[ellenparks]

Ok, say I have a noncom FM, can I run political donar acknowledgements on it? Remember, the commission says I can't didle with the wording of the announcement the candidate wishes to run so if a candidate insists on a call to action, which is not allowed by the commission on noncoms, like: " Vote for me" which law applies? The one which says no call to action or the other one which says you can't restrict what a federal candidate says? What if he wants to make a comparison of his record and his opponit's in his acknowledgement? that's prohibited too.

Another question, can I even run political doner acknowledgements on my station ?

Also, under 73.1941 of the FCC rules ( this is the section which the rules say " applies to all stations" ) it says I can't prohibit a federal candidate from getting airtime. Does this then mean that a federal candidate can request time from a noncom and we must give it to them? Does airtime mean donor acknowledgements?

Anybody know?

 

[TomT]

Generally: No

At one time the political rules were interpreted to mean that a Federal candidate could require a non-com to run a political add, but that loophole was closed.

You can, of course, air a debate between candidates, or do interviews with candidates (as long as you offer equal amount of time to their opponents. You cannot charge for the airtime, however.

 

[DarkStarPDX]

Ok, say I have a noncom FM, can I run political donar acknowledgements on it? Remember, the commission says I can't didle with the wording of the announcement the candidate wishes to run so if a candidate insists on a call to action, which is not allowed by the commission on noncoms, like: " Vote for me" which law applies? The one which says no call to action or the other one which says you can't restrict what a federal candidate says? What if he wants to make a comparison of his record and his opponit's in his acknowledgement? that's prohibited too.

Another question, can I even run political doner acknowledgements on my station ?

You are limited by the same rules for underwriting spots, so if the "Tom Smith for Congress Committee" underwrites a spot you can read that exact name of the committee on the air, however a call for action is specifically not allowed and makes an underwriting spot the equivalent of a for profit commercial. "Tom Smith" is the political candidate, however "Tom Smith for Congress Committee" is the underwriter. You can restrict what is said during an underwriting spot.

The rule you reference has to do with having a political candidate on as part of a program. You can't "censor" them unless they are breaking a specific law (like slander).

Also, under 73.1941 of the FCC rules ( this is the section which the rules say " applies to all stations" ) it says I can't prohibit a federal candidate from getting airtime. Does this then mean that a federal candidate can request time from a noncom and we must give it to them? Does airtime mean donor acknowledgements?

Anybody know?

No, what this rule means is that you must provide an equal opportunity for all political candidates. For example, if you interview a registered mayoral candidate for 10 minutes on a show, you must provide the same 10 minutes to any other registered mayoral candidate on the same program. You can choose to not interview any candidates and then you wouldn't be required to give any time to them. If a candidate happened to call into a live show and get on the air, the other candidates would have the same opportunity (trying to call in and happen to get on the air too).

With this said, this is really a question for your lawyer (since I am not a lawyer). If you don't have a lawyer, you should get one on retainer ASAP that specializes in non-profit broadcasters.

 

[wrsg915fm]

I had to give money back to a candidate, as our licensee, the Tyler Board of Education, wasn't comfortable airing his message, however noncom friendly we could ever make it.