Activist efforts of the Center for Media and Democracy to affect FCC policy for video news releases

Abstract

The study reviews FCC policy about identifying the source of video news releases (VNRs) and looks at the activist efforts of the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) to affect policy. The FCC rules about VNR use are clear: stations are not obligated to identify the source of footage taken from video news releases if there are no sponsorship issues (payment for placement) unless VNRs concern political or controversial issues. The basic argument is whether source identification of VNR material should be self-regulated by journalists or regulated by the government as advocated by the CMD. The study looks at efforts of the Center for Media and Democracy (CMD) to affect the practice of public relations through pressure to regulate video news releases by examining discourse and calls for action on the CMD Web site, responses by other organizations including the Radio and Television News Directors Association (RTNDA), and resulting FCC actions in order to examine the role of activism in the VNR debate. It found CMD efforts influenced the debate by serving an issues activation and agenda-setting function that resulted in news coverage and triggered an FCC investigation of VNR use, but was not successful in the attempt to change policy.