Re: elected officials on the air ...

["A. Joseph Ross" <lawyer@world.std.com>]

On 3 Jan 00,  Sptseditor@aol.com wrote:

> Another reason why Braude's continued on-air work is even more questionable
> that Cambridge uses a system of "proportional representation" where you
> rank the candidates in order of preference as opposed to our usual
> elections. With nine city-wide council seats in Cambridge, there are
> usually 15-20 candidates running for the seats every other year. That makes
> it even more of a problem, since one candidate could come along and demand
> that all candidates are given equal access to the airwaves. 

Well, there used to be a "fairness doctrine" by which the FCC required 
equal time to all candidates.  I don't quite remember when it was 
abolished, but it was.  I remember that, back in the early 70s, when 
George Takei (Sulu) was running for Los Angeles City Council, Star Trek 
didn't run in Los Angeles.  I think the animated Star Trek premiered that 
year, and they kept the episodes which had Sulu off in Los Angeles until 
after the election.




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 A. Joseph Ross, J.D.                                 617.367.0468
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