Transcript Ethical Standards for Media

Ethical Standards for Media
Max Griffith
FCC-Rules on Candidate Appearance
& Advertising
• A station’s license may be revoked if they don’t allow
reasonable access for candidates running in a Federal
election
• If one candidate is allowed use of station, the same
uses must be afforded to the opponents of that
candidate
• News broadcasts, news interviews, news
documentaries and on-the-spot coverage do not count
as a usage of the station by a candidate
FCC con’t
• A station must keep a record of all contact with a
candidate, even if they rejected the candidate’s
proposal for broadcast time
• A station is not required to give broadcast time to a
candidate, but if they do so, they must offer the exact
same opportunity to the other candidates
• For an advertising spot, the candidate can’t be
charged more than other commercial advertisers for
an ad of the same duration and time slot
FCC con’t
• Any sort of discount, bonus-spot or any sort of
additional privilege usually given to
commercial advertisers must also be given to
political candidates
• Again, if the station gives a candidate
advertising time, the same opportunities must
be given to their opponents
• These rules apply whether the station is cable,
satellite or a public station
Standards and Practices
• Name given to the department of a television that
keeps tabs on commercial advertising content and
well as any other non-news content
• They review to see if it adheres to legal, policy,
factual and community standards
• Today, the department mainly serves to protect the
network from any content that could do them any
damage, the rest is left up to the viewers, since the
stations think the viewers are already accepting of
what’s out there
Mass Media Law
• The government may regulate or prohibit advertising
(1) that promotes an unlawful activity or (2) that is
misleading or untruthful. The state may also regulate
truthful advertising for lawful activities and goods if
it can prove (1) that there is a substantial state interest
to justify the regulation, (2) that such regulation
directly advances this state interest, and (3) that there
is a "reasonable fit" between the state interest being
asserted and the governmental regulation.
Mass Media Law-Federal Trade
Commission
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The Federal Trade Commission has the power to regulate virtually all advertising that is
deceptive or misleading. To be deceptive an advertisement must contain a representation,
omission or practice that is likely to mislead the consumer; the advertisement or practice
must be considered from the perspective of a reasonable consumer; and the
representation, omission or practice must be material. The FTC has many remedies to
regulate deceptive or untruthful advertising:
Guides or advisory opinions that attempt to outline in advance what advertisers may say
about a product
Voluntary agreements by advertisers to terminate a deceptive advertisement
Consent agreements or consent orders signed by advertisers promising to terminate a
deceptive advertisement
Litigated orders to advertisers to terminate a particular advertising claim, failure to
comply with which can result in severe penalty
Substantiation of advertisements, in which the advertiser must prove all claims made in
an advertisement
Corrective advertising, in which an advertiser must admit in future advertisements that
past advertisements have been incorrect
Injunctive power to immediately halt advertising campaigns that could cause harm to
consumers
Trade regulation rules that can be issued to regulate advertising throughout an entire
industry
Self-Regulation
• Arguments for:
• The industry has more knowledge of the subject
matter
• They are more flexible (can change the rules when
needed), can also be modified for each industry
• More incentives to adhere to rules made by peers
instead of an agency
• Less costly because the industry is doing it, not the
government, although some government involvement
would me implemented
Self-Regulation con’t
• Arguments against:
• Although the industry may have more knowledge,
they may use that knowledge to maximize profits
• The industry would tailor the rules to their business
plan
• The industry may be unwilling to commit resources
to vigorous self-regulation
• It would be hard for viewer to tell if the industry is
adhering to their own rules, basically accountability
Sources
• http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/S/htmlS/st
andardsand/standardsand.htm
• http://www.fcc.gov/mb/policy/political/candrul
e.htm
• http://highered.mcgrawhill.com/sites/0072492171/
• www.law.indiana.edu/fclj/pubs/v51/no3/CAM
MAC15.PDF