TAB will stage its biennial political broadcasting workshop earlier than in previous years in anticipation of what many expect will be the most costly gubernatorial primary race in Texas history.
“Because the 2010 primary election political window opens earlier than usual, it makes sense for broadcasters to get their refresher on the FCC’s political rules earlier, too,” said Michael Schneider, TAB’s director of programs.
“We’re expecting the Republican gubernatorial primary campaigns of Gov. Rick Perry and Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison to spend millions in advertising dollars prior to the March primary and stations really need to be on top of the FCC’s rules for what already is a bitter election fight.”
New webinar offering, social media component
TAB’s workshop will be offered live at the TAB office in Austin and online via interactive webinar.
The program will be offered in two installments, with a two-hour legal/regulatory review on Dec. 2 and a one-hour new social media component on Dec. 3.
“We’re offering stations an online option to ensure no one misses out because of limited travel budgets,” Schneider said.
The webinar will be fully interactive with participants able to e-mail questions to the speakers.
Bobby Baker, the FCC’s chief of political programming and David Oxenford of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP, will be on hand in Austin to explain the commission’s rules and other laws affecting political broadcasting.
Baker and Oxenford will review the federal and state regulations affecting political candidates, third-party advertising, issue advertising and station appearances in news programs and debates.
Topics included lowest unit rate, sponsorship IDs, ad censorship, recordkeeping and the political file.
Stephen Warley, who runs TAB’s on-demand online sales training program
LocalBroadcastSales.com, will present an online-only presentation on how stations can stop the flow of political ad dollars to social media.
Warley has presented several stand-out sessions at the TAB convention on social media and Internet business models for broadcasters.
“It’s vitally important that stations understand how campaigns are increasingly diverting budgets from traditional media to social media so they can counter the flight of political dollars as much as possible,” Schneider said.
Stations pay just $50 for the Internet option of attending the workshop which means an unlimited number of live online users can view the workshop at each station.
TAB is also signing up a limited number of in-person attendees, just 40, for the live audience of the webinar broadcast from the TAB building.
It’s on a first-come, first-served basis, and limited to just two people per station for the first 20 stations at $50 per person.
Registration opens in early November.
