Download Internet Political Ad Guidelines

Internet Political Ad Guidelines
While broadcast stations are subject to a wide variety of FCC political rules, websites accepting Internet-only
political advertisements are not. However, there are some rules, particularly those set forth by the Federal
Election Commission (“FEC”), of which webcasters need to be aware. Below is a brief summary of the main
issues that website operators need to be aware of when accepting paid political ads on their websites.
Lowest Unit Rate

The lowest unit rate (“LUR”) requirement does not apply to Internet-only advertising time. However,
broadcasters operating websites should be careful to distinguish sales of Internet-only advertising
time from sales of over-the-air advertising time, especially if a broadcast advertising package includes
ancillary Internet-only advertising (e.g., providing banner ads to over-the-air advertisers who purchase
a certain advertising package), which may impose obligations on a station with respect to political
advertising sales, and which may impact the station’s LUR to the extent of the value of the Internet
component. If a station offers a mixed broadcast/Internet advertising package, LUR rules and equal
opportunity rules will apply (see “Equal Opportunities paragraph below).
Disclosure Requirements
The Federal Election Commission (“FEC”) extended disclosure requirements to paid political
advertisements on the Internet as follows:





A paid Internet ad must contain specific disclaimers if it:
o Is placed by a FEC registered political committee; or
o Advocates the election or defeat of a federal candidate; or
o Solicits political contributions
If ad is produced or authorized by a federal candidate or the candidate’s authorized committee,
a text ad must:
o Include a written statement in readable sized type in a separate box as part of the display ad
that clearly discloses the name of the candidate. If we are using the Mixpo X-spot video ads
(300x250), then this disclaimer should appear in the text overlays.
o Disclose who paid for the ad; and
o State that the candidate approved the ad.
If ad is not produced or authorized by federal candidate or the candidate’s authorized
committee, the ad must include a written statement in a separate box as part of the display ad stating
that no federal candidate authorized the advertisement, and the statement “__________ is
responsible for the advertisement; and also the name of any connected organization of the payor, and
the permanent street address, phone number, or web address of the person who paid for the ad. If
we are using the Mixpo X-spot video ads (300x250), then this disclaimer should appear in the text
overlays.
Streaming audio (:30 or :60 spots) commercials are not subject to the Lowest Unit Rate
requirement; however, all disclaimers listed above should be included in both the audio commercial
and any associated sync banners on the audio player.
The broadcaster is responsible for the disclosures. If the candidate does not include them, the
broadcaster can insert them, and charge the candidate for the production costs.
Equal Opportunities

If the website is sold to one candidate as part of a package with broadcast spot time, then the same
offer should be made to competitors of the candidate. This comports with long-standing FCC policy
that, if one advertiser gets extra benefits that come with the purchase of ad time, and those benefits
would be of value to a candidate, they should also be offered to the candidate, and that “equal
opportunities” demands that all candidates for the same office be treated alike.
Censorship


The “no censorship rule,” which forbids a station from editing the content of a candidate’s on-air spot
or rejecting that spot based on its content (unless that spot violates a Federal felony statute), does not
apply to Internet spots. Because candidate spots broadcast on a station cannot be censored, the
station has no liability for the content of those spots, and the station is immune for libel and slander, or
copyright violations, or other sources of potential civil liability for the content of a candidate’s
broadcast spots. However, since these spots can be censored or rejected on the station’s website, a
station could have liability for the content of the Internet spot even though the broadcaster could run
the exact same spot on the air without fear of any liability.
Liability concerns arise in connection with Internet attack ads run by third-party groups not
“authorized” by the candidates. A station has potential liability for defamation or other civil liabilities
that arise from the content of an Internet ad that airs.