This Week in Regulation for Broadcasters: January 19, 2026 to January 23, 2026

By |2026-01-25T07:08:43-06:00January 25th, 2026|Legal News|

Here are some of the regulatory developments of significance to broadcasters from the past week, with links to where you can go to find more information as to how these actions may affect your operations. On our Broadcast Law Blog, we published our annual article explaining the legal issues that can arise from advertising and... Continue Reading…

Watch for Congressional “Franking” Ads in the Last Weeks Before the Pre-Election Period – The FCC Political Broadcasting Implications

By |2022-08-24T10:14:37-05:00August 24th, 2022|Legal News|

We have been receiving numerous calls from broadcasters about “franking” ads from Congressional representatives running for reelection.  Congress each year allows its members to spend certain amounts of money to communicate with their constituents.  This was traditionally done through mailings, which Congressional representatives could send through the US mail without any postage charges (hence the... Continue Reading…

Reminder:  PSAs Featuring Candidates Can Give Rise to Equal Time and Public File Obligations

By |2020-05-26T10:46:00-05:00May 26th, 2020|Legal News|

In recent weeks, with so many government officials looking to get messages out about the coronavirus pandemic, we have received many questions about issues that arise when political candidates appear on public service-type announcements – either free PSAs provided by the station or paid spots purchased by some governmental entity.  While such announcements can be... Continue Reading…

When a Broadcast Advertiser Becomes A Political Candidate, What is a Station to Do?

By |2019-08-26T22:48:35-05:00August 26th, 2019|Legal News|

In many states, we are in election season for local offices, which has resulted in a question that has come up repeatedly in the last few weeks about local candidates – usually running for state or municipal offices – who appear in advertisements for local businesses that they own or manage. Often times, these individuals... Continue Reading…

TV Crime Watch Show is Bona Fide News Program Exempt from Equal Opportunities Requests from Political Candidates – Reviewing the Equal Time Rule

By |2015-08-12T10:51:13-05:00August 12th, 2015|Legal News|

The FCC yesterday issued a Declaratory Ruling at the request of the producers of a new syndicated Crime Watch Daily TV show, a program that will give a daily rundown of crime stories including ongoing court trials from around the nation, declaring that the program would not give rise to equal opportunities claims from political… Continue Reading

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