[Southsider2k12]

http://thenewsdispatch.com/articles/2011/0...9b842942460.txt

Clerk candidate off the airwaves

By Alicia Ebaugh
Staff Writer
Published: Tuesday, April 5, 2011 5:07 PM CDT
MICHIGAN CITY — City Clerk candidate Mike Dempsey has been temporarily removed from his local radio show at the request of his two Democratic competitors, who claimed Dempsey was getting too much "free" exposure to voters.

"I can understand why it would be a perceived advantage for Mike because he's on the air," Ron Miller, radio station WEFM general manager, said of Dempsey's weekday radio show, "Lunchtime Oldies." "We don't have to take him off the air, and we don't want to, but we would have to provide comparable time for his opponents for the amount of time Mike's voice or name was on the air. We just decided to take his voice and name off the air until after Election Day."

Clerk candidates Gail Neulieb and Michael Palmer both wrote letters to WEFM last Monday, citing Federal Communications Commission rules that require radio and TV stations to treat all political candidates the same. On Friday, WEFM began using radio personality Lou Dobbs as the voice of "Lunchtime Oldies," leaving Dempsey to select the music and take requests.

"The candidates can't deny him his employment, but they can deny him air time, if they choose," Miller said.

In Neulieb's letter, she requested equal time, "which is 180 minutes of time a day that he appears on the air.

"This time is negotiable, or we are requesting that Candidate Mike Dempsey be removed from the on-air broadcasts until May 3rd, 2011 (the day of the primary election)," the letter read.

Neulieb's campaign manager, Tony Drzewiecki, said, "We weren't claiming he has an advantage or a disadvantage. We were just going by the letter of the law.

"We weren't even asking for him to be taken off the air...we kicked around whether we even wanted to force the issue, but we heard him daily advertising his website and telling people to not forget to register to vote."

Neulieb and Palmer serve in public roles that could garner free exposure as well. Neulieb is the city's deputy clerk, and Palmer is the Michigan City Police Commission president. Palmer didn't immediately respond to a call for comment Monday.

Dempsey said the move shows "desperation" on his opponents' part. His website, MichiganCityLive.com, has links to all websites for candidates in the May primary, he said. However, links for Neulieb and Palmer weren't found there.

"If I want to say something political on WEFM, I would have to pay for a 30- or 60-second spot just like everybody else," he said.

FCC rules exempt news programs in which candidates are interviewed. However, station employees who run for office trigger the requirement for equal opportunities for candidates in the same political party, even if the program in which they appear is usually considered an exempt program. According to FCC rules, Neulieb and Palmer would only be allowed comparable time for the roughly 12 minutes Dempsey spent talking on the air each day, not the full three hours. As their complaints cover up to seven days of airtime prior to the day they were issued, Miller said the two will still each be allowed 48 minutes of comparable air time in a format to be determined.

"It is up to the candidate how they ask for that time, whether it's in an interview or commercials," Miller said. "We want to work with them because we want to be fair, we're part of the community."

It is not the first time this has happened in Michigan City, either. In November's election for Michigan City Area Schools board members, at-large candidate Mike Gresham was removed mid-season as the voice of Michigan City Wolves' football on radio station WIMS.

"I felt like it gave him more of a presence, and I was afraid listeners would associate him as a school board candidate, even if he never mentioned it," said his opponent, Beth Pishkur, who initially went to the station about the issue. Pishkur ultimately won the seat.

"I didn't expect them to take him off the air, though," she said. "I just asked them how it was supposed to work, but I never made a formal complaint."

Gresham said he didn't fight the station's decision, as he discovered broadcast personalities who are running for office are often taken off the air during campaign season.

[NDReporter]

LOU DOBBS??? And Alicia wonders why people call her paper The News-Disgrace!!!

What? That's what Ron Miller said!

[NDReporter]

What? That's what Ron Miller said!

Oh shoot, my notes say Lou Weber. Seriously. I'm dumb.

[Southsider2k12]

Oh shoot, my notes say Lou Weber. Seriously. I'm dumb.

I'm sorry, but I laughed!

[taxthedeer]

Oh shoot, my notes say Lou Weber. Seriously. I'm dumb.

That's OK, it happens to the best of them. One time Harry Caray called a baseball player named Terry Pendleton, "Teddy Pendergrass".

[Michelle]

lol. Thanks for clearing that up. I thought surely it couldn't be that Lou Dobbs.

[Southsider2k12]

lol. Thanks for clearing that up. I thought surely it couldn't be that Lou Dobbs.

Lou Weber>Lou Dobbs

[Ang]

Ok, at the risk of appearing to be a complete idiot....

Who is Lou Dobbs?

[taxthedeer]

Ok, at the risk of appearing to be a complete idiot....

Who is Lou Dobbs?

Someone WEFM would never be able to afford...

He's the former longtime host of Lou Dobbs Tonight on CNN. He's currently on the Fox Business Network.

http://www.loudobbs.com/

[Southsider2k12]

Someone WEFM would never be able to afford...

He's the former longtime host of Lou Dobbs Tonight on CNN. He's currently on the Fox Business Network.

http://www.loudobbs.com/

Actually he is syndicated, so if they really wanted, WEFM could carry them instead of providing live and local programming.

[Ang]

Aahhh....

CNN & Fox News are on my list of channels to watch when I can't sleep--works better than Lunesta!

Thanks for enlightening me.

[TSNSPYDER]

That's just stupid. If he doesn't make his political views known and just plays music what do we care?

[Southsider2k12]

That's just stupid. If he doesn't make his political views known and just plays music what do we care?

The FCC dictates that if you are doing more than answering question, your opponents can demand equal time. Even if it is something completely unrelated like football.