Bloggers await FEC decision

At AlterNet, Kelly Hearn's Uncle Sam, Meet the Bloggers is a detailed look at how the Federal Elections Commission is wrestling with the blogosphere.

Hearn says the question of whether to exempt bloggers from campaign finance law is complex:

Without a press exemption, some bloggers might be buried by lawsuits. But what happens if millions of bloggers are suddenly given news media status?

Some say corporations and trade unions will sidestep election law by using the unregulated blogosphere to spend unlimited money on political messages.

Responding to Hearn's piece, Ash Roughani posts this comment:

It seems to me that this issue is being overcomplicated. It can be simplified through the use of analogy. If I write political commentary in my blog, it is no different than if I went out in public and started talking to people about my political positions. This is where blogs should be exempted.

However, the second I get paid by a party, candidate, or committee; this is no longer my personal express advocacy, but rather coordinated activity. I think that anyone who believes in the merits of campaign finance reform would agree that these cases ought to be regulated.

More coverage of this issue in Columbia Journalism Review and the Washington Post. The Post story says the FEC is expected to make a decision in the fall.

Comments

[Adam]

Unfortunately, his comment makes no sense under the law. When the New York Times receives advertising money from a campaign, that doesn't make its campaign-related speech coordinated.

Coordination requires control over message.