NBC is giving former President Donald Trump’s campaign free commercial time in response to Vice President Kamala Harris’ appearance on Saturday Night Live, including an unusual ad during Sunday’s NASCAR coverage, a source familiar with the matter says.
Harris appeared on Saturday’s SNL for one minute and 30 seconds, meaning that if another presidential campaign requests it, NBC would need to give it about 90 seconds of time.
On Sunday, NBC broadcast a NASCAR playoff race, but some viewers noticed toward the end of the broadcast (technically right after the race ended but while coverage was still ongoing) that Trump appeared in an unusual ad, speaking directly to camera while wearing a Red “Make America Great Again”baseball cap, and claiming that electing Harris would cause a “depression” and that viewers should “go and vote.”
A source familiar with the matter says that the spot during the NASCAR race was connected to NBC giving the Trump campaign equal time.
Trump was given 60 additional seconds of campaign time during NBC’s Sunday Night Football coverage. While the game was already over, the spot which was the same one that aired during the NASCAR coverage aired during the post-game coverage (and shortly after a paid campaign ad). That’s a total of 120 seconds.
It is not clear whether it was the Trump camp or NBC that suggested the NASCAR and SNFplacements.
It is also not clear if any other campaigns have requested equal time. If they do, however, NBC will likely need to find time for them, given the FCC rules. SNL creator Lorne Michaels previously cited the rules in an interview with Reporters as a reason why the show hadn’t had Trump or Harris on during this cycle.
Harris appeared on SNL in a “cold open”sketchalongside Maya Rudolph, who portrays the Vice President for the late night comedy show. The sketch saw Rudolph’s Harris seeking a pep talk from the real Harris, with the pair ending the bit by saying “Keep Kamala and carry on-ala.”
However the sketch drew a rebuke from FCC commissioner Brendan Carr, who is seen as a potential FCC chair if President Trump is re-elected. Carr wrote that the sketch was “a clear and blatant effort to evade the FCC’s Equal Time rule,”because it came just two days before election day, within the seven-day window the FCC gives campaigns to request equal time.
It is worth noting that the rule “does not require a station to provide opposing candidates with programs identical to the initiating candidate,”per FCC regulations, but rather comparable time and placement.
The quick turnaround for the NASCAR and SNFcoverage suggests that the network is moving quickly to make good on any equal time claims.
Erizia Rubyjeana
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