Giving Voters the Information They Need

Americans get most of their news from TV. Yet broadcasters are no longer providing the public with sufficient information to cast informed votes in elections. In October of 2004 an average half-hour newscast showed 2 minutes and 24 seconds of campaign coverage, compared with eight minutes of advertising and more than six minutes of sports and weather. And in 2004, the major networks — ABC, NBC, CBS and Fox — devoted only three hours of primetime coverage to the Democratic and Republican presidential nominating conventions.

Political ads now dominate election-related broadcasting.

In the 2004 general elections, political ads outnumbered campaign news stories by 5 to 1. Local stations across the country pulled in more than $1.6 billion in revenues from political advertising during the recent election campaign. Paid political speech, now far more common than free political speech, is becoming ever more expensive.

Broadcasters make huge profits on political advertising.

Stations across the country increased the price of candidate ads by more than 50 percent in the final two months of the 2002 campaign. The average price of a candidate ad rose by 53 percent from the end of August through the end of October, 2002. The rise in candidates’ rates is only partly attributable to factors unrelated to politics, such as the launch of the new fall season and the onset of holiday advertising.

Legislation to control candidates’ advertising costs isn’t working as intended.

In 1971, Congress enacted legislation requiring broadcasters to offer candidates the same low advertising rates as their best customers. The “lowest unit charge” statute was supposed to protect candidates from paying a premium because they need to advertise over a specific period, prior to an election. The idea was to cut the costs of pre-election communication with voters, open the political process to more candidates, provide voters with more information and choices, and reduce the role of special-interest money. But the law isn’t working as intended. Candidates who pay the lowest unit charge get “pre-emptible” time slots, which means their ads can be bumped to less desirable times if someone is willing to pay more for the slot. Most candidates choose instead to lock in "non-preemptible" time slots — at rates that are often double or triple the lowest unit charge.

Laws that regulate political advertising are clarified in the Campaign Legal Center's Media Guide, which is designed to inform candidates of their rights and responsibilities under the new rules, remind broadcasters of their duties, and enlighten citizens about the political advertising that permeates their televisions and radios in the fall of even-numbered years.

The laws are summarized in six fundamental rules of broadcasting political campaigns:

1. Broadcast and satellite outlets must allow candidates reasonable access to purchase airtime.
2. Broadcasters must give equal time to all candidates, whether selling or giving away airtime.
3. Candidates' political ads cannot be altered by the broadcasters.
4. Broadcasters must give candidates the least expensive rate that they offer their most-favored advertisers.
5. Broadcasters must compile information about political advertising and make it available to the public.
6. Sponsors of political ads must be identified in the ads. (“I’m Jane Jones and I approved this message.")

The rising costs of political advertising are fueling the
explosion in campaign costs and limiting information that reaches the public.

Broadcast television advertising is by far the largest expense in most high-profile campaigns. Local stations across the country pulled in more than $1.6 billion in revenues from political advertising during the recent election campaign. Mushrooming campaign costs force candidates to spend more of their time on fundraising, boosting the influence of money and special interests on politics.

Broadcasters are failing to meet their obligation to serve the public interest.

Under the Communications Act of 1934, the airwaves are a publicly owned resource. As a condition of obtaining a license to use the airwaves, broadcasters agree to honor their public-interest obligations — including the obligation to ensure the flow of political information essential to a self-governing democracy. But local public affairs shows account for fewer than one-half of one percent of all programs on local TV stations. The more money broadcasters rake in from paid political advertising, the less time they devote to campaign coverage — especially to airing candidates’ views and exploring campaign issues.

Communications policy can correct these problems.

Reforms in communications policy can reduce campaign costs dramatically — and, by extension, curtail the influence of money on politics. Reform groups propose the following steps:

• Require licensed broadcasters to devote more prime time coverage to political candidates and campaign issues before elections.
• Provide qualified federal candidates and parties with free or low-cost air time prior to primary and general elections.
• Strengthen and enforce Federal Communications Commission regulations with respect to the sale and pricing of broadcast advertising time for candidates and parties.