The deadline for candidates in Texas to file for a place on the March 3 primary ballot was this week. Deadlines for filing to become a qualified candidate in other states will follow soon for other primaries that occur in March, and then throughout the first part of 2026. As a result, broadcast stations and... Continue Reading…
Last week, we wrote about the impact of the FCC’s decision to standardize certifications from program buyers verifying that they are not representatives of foreign governments – and the accompanying decision to expand that requirement to political issue advertising and paid PSAs. In that article, we noted the August 15 effective date for most of... Continue Reading…
Last week, we wrote about the impact of the FCC’s decision to standardize certifications from program buyers verifying that they are not representatives of foreign governments – and the accompanying decision to expand that requirement to political issue advertising and paid PSAs. In that article, we noted the August 15 effective date for most of... Continue Reading…
The FCC this week issued a Public Notice announcing the effective date of certain portions of the FCC Order released in June adopting changes to its requirements that broadcasters obtain certifications from buyers of program time on their stations that the sponsors are not foreign governments or agents of those governments. As we wrote when... Continue Reading…
In the 45 days before a political primary and the 60 days before a general election, ads by political candidates (federal, state, or local) airing on a broadcast station or inserted by a local cable system into the programming it transmits to the public are entitled to “lowest unit rates” (LUR). That means that candidates... Continue Reading…
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. A bill was introduced in the US Senate proposing to prohibit any FCC or criminal action against a broadcaster who... Continue Reading…
Back in January, we reminded broadcasters that state and local elections, even those held in “off-years” like 2021, still fall within the FCC’s political broadcasting rules. Virtually all FCC rules, with the exception of reasonable access, apply to candidates for the local school board or town council just as they do for candidates for President... Continue Reading…
In the last few days, two defamation cases filed against media companies by the Trump campaign have been dismissed – one on the merits and one by agreement of the parties. This includes the suit filed by the campaign against Northland Television, the licensee of a rural Wisconsin television station. That station was perhaps the... Continue Reading…
Political “issue advertising” – advertising run by groups like PACs and political parties rather than a candidate’s authorized campaign committees – is a rough and tumble world in which broadcasters can often find themselves in the middle. We’ve written extensively (here, here and here) about how issue advertising can impose additional public file obligations on... Continue Reading…