--- begin forwarded text Delivered-To: ignition-point@majordomo.pobox.com X-Sender: believer@telepath.com Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 04:14:44 -0500 To: believer@telepath.com From: believer@telepath.com Subject: IP: Court ruling allows anonymous political attacks Mime-Version: 1.0 Sender: owner-ignition-point@majordomo.pobox.com Precedence: list Reply-To: believer@telepath.com Source: The Oregonian http://www.oregonlive.com/todaysnews/9810/st101108.html Court ruling allows anonymous attacks Viciousness increases after the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down an Oregon law requiring that political ads be credited Sunday, October 11 1998 By Laura Oppenheimer of The Oregonian staff Terry Thompson and Ryan Deckert opened their mailboxes in mid-September to discover unpleasant surprises: anonymous political advertisements lambasting their public records. The two Democratic Oregon House members apparently were the first targets in what promises to be a vicious advertising attack season. And there's still plenty of time for candidates to exchange barbs before the Nov. 3 election, said Tim Gleason, dean of the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication. "This is the true test, said Gleason, who is coordinator of the Oregon Alliance for Better Campaigns. Races tighten up, and people are going all out. Frequently, the candidate isn't really in control of all the steps taken toward the end. A lot of people want that candidate to win. Although the ads against Thompson and Deckert included their opponents return addresses, as mandated by the U.S. Postal Service, they did not say who paid for or authorized them. Some candidates are taking advantage of a 1996 U.S. Supreme Court ruling that invalidated Oregons law requiring the sponsors name to run with all political advertising. Bills proposed during the 1997 Legislature would have reinstated regulations to counteract the court ruling. But the legislation stalled at the committee level and never came up for a vote. Oregons public officials didnt just maintain the level of negative attack ads by ignoring the legislation, Secretary of State Phil Keisling said. They raised the profile of the ruling so candidates knew they could run anonymous advertisements. "The Legislature just turned their backs on it, Keisling said. Their inaction spoke volumes about their concern about anonymous ads. The effect was to put up a big neon sign saying, Anonymous attack ads now allowed in Oregon. So whats the big deal about one little line of type that says paid for by . . . ? In a political climate where sparring can lead to voters cynicism, candidates should take responsibility for their criticisms, Keisling said. And all-out advertising slugfests can result in hard feelings -- and more partisan politics -- after the election is over, legislators said. "The truth matters, said Ed Kammer, an advertising activist who lobbied legislators to pass new regulations. The facts matter. Its a persons right to ignore what they want to ignore, but its not a thiefs right to disguise the theft. Many legislators, including Thompson, D-Newport, and Deckert, D-Beaverton, said they would support the type of legislation Keisling advocates if it is proposed again during the 1999 Legislature. In the meantime, candidates are free to be as vicious as they want. Aware of just how nasty this campaign season could become, several groups are pushing voluntary codes of conduct to stop the underhanded advertising before it starts. About 50 candidates signed Keislings Stand By Your Ad pledge, which requires them to include their name and address on all political advertising and to take responsibility for any criticism of their opponents. That means using their pictures in written material, narrating a radio ad and appearing on-screen in a TV commercial if it involves a comparison of candidates. Many candidates also signed the League of Women Voters code of conduct, which was adopted by the Oregon Alliance for Better Campaigns. The alliance, which is not counting the number of signers or keeping track of how candidates who took the pledge behave, is asking candidates to keep campaigns clean. The alliance also is coordinating issue-oriented, analytical political coverage on TV and radio stations across the state. "Its no more complicated than one of the things my mom told me growing up, Keisling said of his pledge. If youre going to say something bad about somebody, say it to their face. But nobody will be reprimanding candidates who violate the pledges or choose not to sign them. And for some candidates, sticking with the pledge will mean not responding to jabs at their character, credibility or public record. In mid-September, voters received a mailing with the headline, What was Terry thinking? In a large-print checklist, the ad compares Thompson with Republican Alan Brown, his opponent in House District 4. "Supports returning the income tax kicker refund shows a no for Thompson and a yes for Brown. So does the campaigns are bankrolled by big labor unions category. Thompson said many of the footnotes supporting these criticisms were based on one detail of a large bill or on bills that never came to a vote. Amid these sweeping accusations, Brown did not include a statement that his campaign had paid for the flier. Several years ago, the ad would have violated Oregon law. Henri Schauffler, Deckerts Republican opponent, said he would change one thing about his September fliers if he had it to do over again: Hed include the sponsorship. But he would keep the derogatory rundown of his opponents record, which included claims that Deckert believes voting against small business 57 percent of the time is acceptable and supports spending 2 percent kicker tax refunds to fund state government programs. Schauffler, who signed Keislings pledge, said he did not design the anonymous ads and regrets allowing them to be distributed. "Against my better judgment, I went ahead with the ads, Schauffler said. Im ultimately responsible, and I take responsibility for that mistake. Its not going to happen again from my camp. Deckert said he received more than 100 calls, e-mail messages and letters of support from voters who had seen the attack ads against him. Victims of negative ads face enormous pressure to retaliate, candidates said. In past elections, party workers have even suggested that Thompson hire a detective to spy on his opponent, he said. ----------------------- NOTE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. section 107, this material is distributed without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving this information for non-profit research and educational purposes only. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ----------------------- ********************************************** To subscribe or unsubscribe, email: majordomo@majordomo.pobox.com with the message: (un)subscribe ignition-point email@address ********************************************** www.telepath.com/believer ********************************************** --- end forwarded text ----------------- Robert A. Hettinga <mailto: rah@philodox.com> Philodox Financial Technology Evangelism <http://www.philodox.com/> 44 Farquhar Street, Boston, MA 02131 USA "... however it may deserve respect for its usefulness and antiquity, [predicting the end of the world] has not been found agreeable to experience." -- Edward Gibbon, 'Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'