Adelstein, Copps Denounce Video News Releases
Documentation of “widespread” use of video news releases (VNRs) upset Comrs. Copps and Adelstein. Adelstein called for 77 TV stations alleged to have aired VNRs without disclosing their origin to apologize to viewers. Comr. Copps called for a crackdown on unattributed use of VNR material, a frequent Adelstein target (CD April 3 p4). In a study, the Center for Media & Democracy found the stations in question used 36 VNRs almost 100 times without revealing their sources. Diane Farsetta, who helped write the study, called it evidence of “the biggest plagiarism scandal in the history of American broadcasting.” The group and Free Press, another media activist organization, asked the FCC to investigate.
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The Commission “will review the complaint carefully,” a spokesman said. The stations, owned by CBS, Clear Channel, News Corp., Tribune and other companies, “clearly misled their audience,” Adelstein said: “It’s often impossible for viewers to tell the difference between news and propaganda.” FCC rule violations could draw fines up to $32,500 in each case, and criminal findings should be referred to DoJ, he said. VNRs cited in the study featured a range of products, from Victoria’s Secret lip gloss, candy and flowers to ethanol, said Daniel Price, who also helped write the report.
RTNDA reminded members of guidelines advising disclosure when “any outside material [is] used in news programming.” The group “strongly urges station management to review and strengthen their policies requiring complete disclosure,” the group said. But govt. intervention isn’t the solution, it said. Adelstein, however, said: “It certainly appears as if the industry is incapable of effectively regulating itself.”
“We need to come down hard on this,” said Copps. “When legitimate news is scrapped in favor of outright propaganda, viewers are in trouble,” he said in a written statement. Comr. Tate and Chmn. Martin didn’t comment. NAB and some broadcasters listed in the report had no comment. Stations cited in the Free Press complaint include KABC-TV L.A., WCBS- TV N.Y., WGN-TV Chicago and WHDH-TV Boston.
Like RTNDA, CBS reminded its owned stations of company policy requiring that VNR material be disclosed, a spokeswoman said: “We've reinforced our policy both verbally and in writing.” “We're looking into these few occurrences, but we don’t yet know all the facts,” she said: “We will determine what action, if any, is appropriate once we know the facts.”
The regulations should clarify when stations must disclose material is from a VNR, Adelstein said: “We need to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking to make it clear… We need to make it clear what full and fair disclosure means.” Stations must state when they're paid to air programming, a Commission notice said last year. But “sponsorship identification” isn’t necessary if the station hasn’t “directly received or been promised consideration,” it said. FCC rules help ensure “that the listening public knows when someone is seeking to influence them,” said the FCC official: “Broadcasters must comply with these rules.”
Adelstein said use of undisclosed content sponsored by companies is “pervasive.” Price described a “pandemic.” A former broadcast journalist agreed with those assessments. “It’s one of broadcasting’s dirty little secrets that, especially at smaller TV stations that don’t have a lot of resources, they cheat, in my opinion, by getting video news releases supplied to them,” George Washington U. Prof. Mark Feldstein said: “It’s pictures and video supplied by outsiders that have a vested interest.”
The report and its authors were mum on their methods and on how they obtained original videos from 3 public relations firms that produced them. Center for Media & Democracy Exec. Dir. John Stauber told us: “We're investigative journalists. We can’t reveal our sources.” He also described the organization he founded as a “public interest group.”
The FCC can’t afford independent monitoring for VNR use, Adelstein told us. “Our Enforcement Bureau is going to be busy” dealing with the complaints, he said: “It’s frankly unlikely that we will go out there and do what we should do, which is affirmatively investigate.”