Washington D.C. — As the U.S. Senate
today passed historic campaign finance reform legislation, U.S. Senator
Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) hailed the inclusion of his "Stand By Your Ad"
amendment in the bill now headed for the President's desk. The amendment,
co-sponsored by Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), requires federal candidates
to take personal responsibility for references made to an opponent
in radio or television advertising in order to qualify for the lowest
usage rate available for commercial time.
"Asking Federal candidates to personally stand by any references
to an opponent in their advertising is a big step toward cleaning
up our election process and restoring voter trust," said Wyden.
"I'm proud to see the Wyden-Collins 'Stand By Your Ad' amendment
included in this historic campaign finance reform legislation, and
will be even prouder when the President signs McCain-Feingold into
law."
The Communications Act of 1934 gave candidates for federal office
the benefit of buying advertising time on radio and television at
lowest unit rate available. The Wyden-Collins "Stand By Your Ad"
amendment makes candidates who take advantage of the subsidy take
personal ownership of references made to opponents in ads sold at
that lowest unit rate. On television, any advertisement referring
to a candidate's opponent would be required to include a clearly
identifiable photograph of the candidate and a clearly readable
written statement identifying the candidate and stating that the
candidate has approved the broadcast. Radio ads would also be required
to contain a statement by the candidate identifying himself or herself
and the office for which he or she is running, and stating that
he or she approved the broadcast. Candidates choosing not to stand
by their references to opponents could still buy ad time at rates
comparable to that charged to commercial users at the station.
Wyden's first act upon joining the U.S. Senate in 1996 was to
sign on as a co-sponsor of the McCain-Feingold legislation. As a
candidate for the Senate, Wyden pulled his own negative campaign
ads off the air in a tough special election. Believing that such
ads ran contrary to his beliefs about public service, Wyden chose
to take personal responsibility for his own campaign advertising
and go 100% positive in that contest, and conducted a 100% positive
campaign for the Senate in 1998. The Wyden-Collins "Stand By Your
Ad" amendment encourages federal candidates to accept similar responsibility
for the use of discount advertising time intended to ensure an informed
electorate.
