MADISON, Wis. -- In the coming days, you may see a political ad on WISC-TV and other Wisconsin television stations with graphic images.
The ad is paid for by the Terry for President campaign. Randall Terry is the presidential candidate for the Constitution Party. He is on the ballot in 13 states, including Wisconsin.
And WISC-TV is required by law to run the ad.
The anti-abortion advertisement is 30 seconds and displays disturbing images of aborted fetuses.
As a qualified candidate on the November 5 general election ballot in Wisconsin, his ad will be airing on WISC-TV and other television stations.
The Federal Communications Commission's political programming and campaign advertising rules generally govern the circumstances under which broadcast stations and others air political-related advertisements.
Broadcast stations must offer "reasonable access" to legally qualified candidates for federal office, as well as "equal opportunities" (frequently referred to as "equal time") for legally qualified federal, state, and local candidates.
FCC regulations also prohibit censorship of candidate-sponsored ads.
As a qualified candidate, he and others qualify for the "lowest unit charges" and "comparable rates" that broadcast stations and cable systems may charge for their advertisements.
When asked to view the ad, some people spoke out how graphic imagery like this affects them when they saw it.
"I'm sorry but there are children watching tv, that's totally unacceptable," said one viewer.
"When they come on TV, I change the station," said another viewer.
Some told News 3 Now that while the images may be unsettling, they can also be effective.
"I don't agree with that political messaging. But we're here, talking about Palestine. So it's hard for me to make a blanket statement against being exposed to these type of images," a third viewer said.
And while some found the graphic images more disturbing than others, most had the same question: how is this allowed?
"So what Congress wanted to do was basically encourage free speech on broadcast stations for candidates," said David Oxenford, a broadcast media attorney. "They didn't want to give broadcasters the opportunity to censor or play political favorites."
Whether you agree or disagree with the message, or how it's delivered, those candidates still have the right to air it.
"So it leaves very little, well, no choice for local broadcasters," said Katy Culver, Director of the Center of Journalism Ethics. "And that's a real struggle when the content of the ad flies in the face of the values of the local broadcaster."
One big question facing voters is whether political advertisements will affect the vote?
"It definitely could flip my vote around if I didn't know better to do my own research," said one person
But experts say it's more likely that voters will simply turn away from the election as a whole.
"I have a hard time seeing anybody, reacting to this ad with anything other than disgust," said Culver. "So I doubt that it would be politically motivating, but it might be demotivating. So I'm so disgusted by the tenor of this election that I'm just going to stay home, that's the only outcome that I could envision."
Channel3000 and WISC-TV will not be showing the ad in full or linking to it, but the ad is already airing at various times. Station management has added a disclaimer before the ad begins, as allowed by law.
COPYRIGHT 2024 BY CHANNEL 3000. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. THIS MATERIAL MAY NOT BE PUBLISHED, BROADCAST, REWRITTEN OR REDISTRIBUTED.
Local News
Comments / 0