On Saturday, October 3, Saturday Night Live carried a skit in which Hillary Clinton appeared as a bartender named “Val”. She served an actress who was playing Hillary Clinton. The skit lasted for 3 minutes and 12 seconds.
Now, NBC has notified its stations who carry Saturday Night Live that they should notify the FCC that they gave Clinton free air time. The Equal Time rule still applies to broadcast television, but it has been interpreted over the years to exclude bona fide news events, including interviews.
It is somewhat plausible that other candidates for the Democratic presidential nomination might now ask for an equal amount of time on the stations that carried the skit. Thanks to Rick Hasen for this link. Equal time does not mean that the candidates seeking free air time necessarily need to be on Saturday Night Live. It just means they may be entitled to some free time.
There should be a petition to get Jill Stein on SNL.
How about for the GOP candidates? (Also, I knew the subject of equal time was going to happen when they did that.)
I would like to find out whether the other candidates decide to pursue equal time, and how they use their 3 minutes 12 seconds.
This might be a good opportunity one for Larry Lessig.
Thanks for picking up this article, Richard. (As a BAN subscriber, I’m especially appreciative.)
Michael, it is interesting that you expected it. SNL has had active presidential candidates on before, and NBC had apparently not felt it necessary then to urge affiliates to file. I have a hunch that the difference this time is that at least one of the numerous other campaigns contacted NBC.
Interesting tidbit: it seems the last time SNL featured a candidate during the primary campaign was 8 years ago, when Obama showed up at (faux)Hillary’s Halloween party (in an Obama mask).
(btw, if you want to read NBC’s memo to the affiliates, it is embedded in the article Richard linked above.)
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Paul, the reason I expected it was because candidates have been playing fast and loose with the equal time rules over the years by appearing on “entertainment” programs like SNL, this time the other candidates got tired of it. In 1980, John Anderson was shown in the audience, and also candidates like Paul Simon and John McCain were on the show following the elections they ran in. I have an ideal more candidate will be on SNL for their 3:12.
I just remembered. There was a case in Michigan in 1980. A local station ran a Ronald Reagan movie (I guess for laughs) and the local Howard Baker campaign filed a protest. The tv station had to give equal time that was equal to Reagan’s screen time in the movie. Does anyone else know or remember this?
All radio and television stations should be required to give all candidates whose names are listed on the official ballot, “X” number of minutes during a 30 day period prior to the election day.
I also believe all newspapers which publish a public newspaper to likewise give to all candidates listed on the official ballot “X” number of inches of advertising space in their editions during a 30 day period prior to the election day.
None of this has anything to do with infringing on the “right to free speech and freedom of the press” as the Constitution provides.
Elections – and all of the candidates running – are too important for the people to know about, to permit the radio and television stations to shut out minor party and Independent candidates who cannot afford the expensive advertising rates the radio stations and television stations charge.
We have got to take back our election process and put it into the hands of the people, even if the tactics used by the government may be called totalitarian by some people. We don’t live in a perfect world!