On Monday, New Jersey 101.5 (WKXW) morning host Bill Spadea announced he is running as a Republican candidate for governor. Now the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission will decide whether keeping his radio show violates campaign rules.
Spadea intends to file his candidacy near the 2025 New Jersey gubernatorial deadline. This strategy would theoretically allow him to continue hosting his morning show without breaching the equal-time regulations for political advertising on air.
The Commission sent an Order to Show Cause to Bill Spadea and Townsquare Media and will hold a hearing on June 26 to determine if the airtime provided to Spadea should be counted as an indirect financial benefit to his campaign. The legal limit for an in-kind contribution is $5,800, per new state inflation adjustments.
Spadea and Townsquare Media must respond to the Order to Show Cause by June 24. Other parties have until the day of the hearing to submit briefs.
In a statement, Spadea commented, “Leave it to the Trenton Swamp to come after the first middle-class threat to their fiefdom in decades. My opponents and their power broker pals are coming after me for one reason: they’re scared of what I stand for. The insiders are scared that when I win, the people of New Jersey will regain power – and they’ll lose theirs. I’ve got news for everyone. We’re digging in. We’re ready to fight. We’re not going anywhere.”
Spadea’s lawyer Charles Spies told the New Jersey Globe, “Bill Spadea has been a wildly popular radio host for almost a decade and there is nothing in New Jersey law that requires him to give up his livelihood while running for office. His radio show is not campaign related and as long as he avoids mentioning his campaign he has a Constitutionally protected right to continue discussing local issues important to everyday New Jerseyans.”
Townsquare Media previously stated, “Until he becomes a legally qualified candidate, Bill will continue to fulfill his employment responsibilities entertaining and informing the local audience on NJ 101.5 airwaves and digital platforms, as he has done for the last 9 years. However, we are sensitive to the legal parameters attendant keeping a broadcast personality on air while they are seeking public office.”
“Accordingly, we have taken steps and imposed guidelines to ensure that Bill’s on-air presence over the coming months and until he becomes a legally qualified candidate, are in accordance with New Jersey election law, applicable FCC guidance, and industry standards and best practices for such circumstances.”
Way back when I was college kid, Barry Farber, talk radio host on WOR announced his candidacy for congress. As a result, Farber was not allowed on the air due to the equal time clause. He was temporarily replaced with guest hosts. That’s how a bunch of us wet behind the ears college broadcasters got to do weekend nights on WOR. In spite of Farber being a “conservative”, he and his staff helped the female members of our group book several feminist movement leaders to our weekend shows. Unlike today’s narrowminded conservatives, Farber was open to exploring every side of every issue.
And the mainstream media targets him. He’s getting his equal time. The “other side” would be charged billion$ for the amount of propaganda it spews for the left.
Let’s be fair.
Equal time would be if he allowed all of the other candidates to sit in with him every day. Would he allow that?
It’s obviously unfair to other candidates that he has a free platform for his views while all of his opponents must buy time. Same with Trump. He gets to talk all day about how he’s being targeted, while the other side has to pay for ads. Completely unfair election interference, and the media is facilitating it all.