Fred Thompson's FCC Problem

[MrSanity]

If Fred runs, his campaign is in complete control of the media.

Link: http://www.cnn.com/video/player/player.html?url=/video/politics/2007/04/03/costello.equal.time.affl

Go to "Law and Order may face real law"

[DoctorDoom]

That link is inaccessible by a direct method. Do you have the web page for it?

[Rhino]

Try this one:

http://www.cnn.com/video/player/player.html?url=/video/politics/2007/04/03/costello.equal.time.affl

[MrSanity]

Try this one:

http://www.cnn.com/video/player/player.html?url=/video/politics/2007/04/03/costello.equal.time.afflThanks!

As Hillary Rotten would say, "Let the conversation begin."

[Rhino]

No problem.

Conversation? Okay. It's bullshit. Equal time is meant for political speech, not for fictional drama shows.

I corrected the original link.

[MrSanity]

I haven't followed Fred Thompson that long, nor have most people. I think that Fred will have a hard time getting his message out if networks take advantage of the BS equal time law with reruns of Law and Order.

Is there any reason why the FCC shouldn't be abolished?

[Rhino]

They serve a useful purpose, but unfortunately that's never what you hear about in the media.

[MrSanity]

They serve a useful purpose, but unfortunately that's never what you hear about in the media.What you do hear about is their abuses of power, something every American should frown upon.

[Rhino]

The FCC didn't pass the equal protection crap. Congress did. The FCC is just saddled with enforcing it. But yeah, bureaucrats can screw up anything.

[MrSanity]

Thank you for clearing that up.

[DoctorDoom]

Conversation? Okay. It's bullshit. Equal time is meant for political speech, not for fictional drama shows.Here's the info on the laws.

It is the closest thing in broadcast content regulation to the "golden rule." The equal time, or more accurately, the equal opportunity provision of the Communications Act requires radio and television stations and cable systems which originate their own programming to treat legally qualified political candidates equally when it comes to selling or giving away air time. Simply put, a station which sells or gives one minute to Candidate A must sell or give the same amount of time with the same audience potential to all other candidates for the particular office. However, a candidate who can not afford time does not receive free time unless his or her opponent is also given free time. Thus, even with the equal time law, a well funded campaign has a significant advantage in terms of broadcast exposure for the candidate.

The equal opportunity requirement dates back to the first major broadcasting law in the United States, the Radio Act of 1927. Legislators were concerned that without mandated equal opportunity for candidates, some broadcasters might try to manipulate elections. As one congressman put it, "American politics will be largely at the mercy of those who operate these stations." When the Radio Act was superseded by the Communications Act of 1934, the equal time provision became Section 315 of the new statute.EQUAL TIME RULE - U.S. Broadcasting Regulatory Rule (http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/E/htmlE/equaltimeru/equaltimeru.htm)

[MrSanity]

Thanks for the info.

Legislators were concerned that without mandated equal opportunity for candidates, some broadcasters might try to manipulate elections.

Oddly enough, that's exactly what will happen if Law and Order is used up as "Fred Thompson time."

[HomeschoolrsRUs]

In the show he plays a FICTIONAL character, and not even a political one! It's not like if say Martin Sheen were running for office, when he PLAYED the President in The Left Wing.

Senator Thompson won't be promoting a political stance on the show, and seeing as how the shows (most of them anyway) AREN'T contemporary (up to date), they will not even reflect political positions of today. How can one apply equal or fair time to a television show about a fictional characer?

[DoctorDoom]

It's considered media exposure. It has been applied before. From the page cited in post #11:

However, appearances by candidates in shows which do not fit under the four exempt formats will trigger the equal opportunities provision, even if the appearance is irrelevant to the campaign. Therefore, during Ronald Reagan's political campaigns, if a station aired one of his films, it would have been required to offer equal time to Mr. Reagan's opponents.Ahnuld faced the same issue.

Walsh said earlier that Schwarzenegger plans to appear on the syndicated Oprah Winfrey talk show but the specifics have not been finalized. It is unclear how the Communications Act will affect that appearance because Winfrey's show is distributed nationally to local broadcast television networks.

Stations that give time to candidates on regularly scheduled newscasts, news interview shows or documentaries are exempt.

Some stations have cancelled shows, including Schwarzenegger movies and re-runs of candidate Gary Coleman's sitcom "Diff'rent Strokes," because of the act.

Similar restrictions were placed on Ronald Reagan films during his political campaigns.Schwarzenegger's Stern appearance postponed (http://www.cnn.com/2003/ALLPOLITICS/08/20/schwarzenegger.stern/index.html)

The nature of the face time is immaterial.

[Rhino]

That's the bullshit part of all this.

[DesertFox]

Yeah. It was obviously passed because no liberal actor or actress has or had enough brains to attract the vote for office.

[Lubbock]

Provided Thompson decides to run, if the Dems push this, there will be a backlash.

Not from the spineless so-called Republican weenies inside [or outside] the Beltway --that bunch of no-danglies has already picked their "establishment" candidate, and they would love nothing more than to see a stumbling block thrown Thompson's way.

The backlash will come from the Hard-core Hinterland --the ones of us who know just how badly needed a Republican dandidate like Thompson is imperative if we are have any hope of pulling this nation back from the brink, and the backlash could get ugy.

I can't think of anything that would make the Dems look any sillier.

[BuckeyeMike]

I don't think the Dems really give a shit if they look silly or not...just as long as they win in the end. They certainly don't give a shit if they look and act as socialists, communists, or just out and out assholes...(Algore...Floriduh) etc....so looking silly ain't shit to them! They, and to some extent the Pubs,(Mex. border) really could care less what the citizens of this country think, feel, or want!

[thoughtomator]

Conversation? Okay. It's bullshit. Equal time is meant for political speech, not for fictional drama shows.


I seem to recall more than one fictional drama show that may as well have been a weekly hour-long Hillary commercial. Hard to say where exactly the line is - which is why there should be no line at all. The government has no place regulating speech, most importantly political speech.

[MrSanity]

If Hillary is the candidate, my impression is that the more face time she gets, the more it would hurt her. Only in New York or France could she win an election.

Barack Obama is a different story. He's a very dangerous man. He's dangerous because he has a good sales pitch that digests well with the left, and he will likely poison the center with his kiss of death. But he will break America's spine in half if he is elected president. He shows no hesitation for troop retreat and no desire to win the War on Terror.

[Apollo5600]

I think Obama is just a paper candidate with a cute face. Once tall and deep voiced Thompson and VP Tancredo stand next to Hillary and her female vp Obama, we'll win the election instantly.

[MrSanity]

I think Obama is just a paper candidate with a cute face. Once tall and deep voiced Thompson and VP Tancredo stand next to Hillary and her female vp Obama, we'll win the election instantly.I can guarantee you that Hillary will NOT be the nominee. Anyone who has paid attention to her poll numbers can see that. They've fallen by almost 10% since she's announced her candidacy.

Obama will be popular among the sheeple. My guess is that the RATs will want a candidate who has been anti-WOT from the beginning, as Obama has. Edwards is pitching the same pitch that didn't get him the nomination in 2004, and he was "for it" before he was "against it."

Dodd, Biden, and The Kooch don't have a prayer in my estimation. And given Hillary's image as a loose cannon, I don't think she'll be the VP nominee, either.

Giuliani (too liberal for a lot of us, but pro-WOT/fiscal conservative) and Thompson (strong conservative, but undeclared candidate) could slaughter Barackie Obombie in the debates and the polls.

[DeclinetoState]

I can guarantee you that Hillary will NOT be the nominee. Anyone who has paid attention to her poll numbers can see that. They've fallen by almost 10% since she's announced her candidacy.

Don't put too much stock in the polls. It's still early in the game, but even if the polls are accurate, the Clinton machine can rig a lot of primaries and caucuses to make sure she gets the delegates she needs to win the nomination--and maybe even to prevail in the general election, no matter the opponent.

[HomeschoolrsRUs]

Anybody who thinks Hillary Clinton will roll over and play nice if she ISN'T the nominee has another think coming. All one has to do is review history regarding all the former Clinton associates, and their current whereabouts/activities, :smirky: . I'm as sure as I can be that she WILL be the nominee, and almost as sure that Osamabama will be her veep. Polls-shmolls, the dems simply cannot afford to "pay her back" for standing by their man, not to mention all the dirt she probably has on everybody.


Getting back to the topic at hand, though, I STILL don't know how they are going to balance Senator Thompson's appearances on Law & Order, unless they air back-to-back democrat political ads before, during and after the show. :question:

[DesertFox]

I can guarantee you that Hillary will NOT be the nominee.Thank you. That's a big relief. :D