News > FCC rejects Schwarzenegger rival's Leno complaint
October 27, 2006
Content taken from TV.com:
US broadcast regulators Thursday rejected a complaint by California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's Democratic rival, who demanded equal time on NBC TV stations after Schwarzenegger appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno.
The Federal Communications Commission ruled that, because Schwarzenegger's guest spot on the show qualified as a "bona fide news interview," NBC was not required to extend a similar invitation to Democrat Phil Angelides.
News interviews are an exception to federal rules that generally require broadcast outlets to give opposing political candidates equal time.
A spokesman for Angelides, who is trailing Schwarzenegger in the polls, called the FCC's seven-page ruling politically motivated.
"We are disappointed but not surprised that the Bush-controlled FCC has made a political decision over the use of our public airwaves," said Angelides adviser Steve Maviglio.
President Bush and Schwarzenegger are both Republicans.
"The commission's tortured decision to try to certify Jay Leno as a modern day Walter Cronkite is more laughable than one of Leno's monologues," he said.
Angelides had claimed that the Tonight Show was not a legitimate news program but an attempt by comedian Leno to "promote his good friend's political campaign" on the public airwaves. The FCC dismissed that contention as "little more than speculation."
The ruling made no reference to porn star turned gubernatorial candidate Mary Carey, who followed the lead of Angelides by demanding that Leno also give her equal time on the Tonight Show.
Carey, who dropped out of the race this week after her mother injured herself by jumping from a four-story building in Florida, did not file a formal complaint with the FCC.
