Our Democracy Our Airwaves

Action Alert: Ask Your Senators to Co-Sponsor the McCain/Feingold/Durbin Broadcast Bill which would require television and radio stations to provide voters with more and better information about candidates and issues at election time.

• requires that television and radio stations, as part of the public interest obligation they incur when they receive a free broadcast license, air at least two hours a week of candidate-centered or issue-centered programming during the period before elections;


• enables qualifying federal candidates and national parties to receive up to $750 million worth of broadcast vouchers that can be used to place political advertisements on television and radio stations in each two year election cycle. The voucher system will be financed by a spectrum use fee of not more than one percent of the gross annual revenues of broadcast license holders; and


• closes loopholes in the “lowest unit cost” provision in order to ensure that candidates receive the same advertising rates that stations give to their high-volume, year-round advertisers.

posted by Cyndy | link | | |
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