BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — WKBW 7ABC wants to make you aware of a graphic advertisement that you may see on our airwaves for anti-abortion rights advocate and Presidential candidate Randall Terry.
The images used in the ad are very graphic, and we want to explain why it is airing on our station: because we are required by law to air it.
As a license holder from the Federal Communications Commission, WKBW-TV must abide by rules prohibiting us from censoring political ads run by federal candidates.
The policy of WKBW-TV and its parent company, The E.W. Scripps Company, is to support the free speech principles that are the basis of the First Amendment. Those principles include robust and open debate on political issues, even when political candidates use aggressive advertising tactics.
The ad shows gruesome images of lynchings of Black people, and deceased babies and fetuses.
According to the FCC, "Broadcast stations are prohibited from censoring or rejecting political ads that are paid for and sponsored by legally qualified candidates." Terry will be on the ballot in 13 states this fall, including New York, representing the Constitution Party.
The no-censorship provision does not apply to political ads that are sponsored by non-candidate third parties, the FCC states.
