ALL-IN Debates letter to WTTW & City Club of Chicago - supplement
Letter to staff at Chicago Tonight television show at WTTW-11 (owned/run by tax-exempt, 501(c)(3) Window To The World Communications, Inc.) and tax-exempt, City Club of Chicago, encouraging them to do what is best for voters of Illinois - including Green Party candidates in debates, and allowing equal access to publicly-funded broadcast television. This would allow voters to hear from ALL established political party candidates that will appear on the ballot, which in turn would promote greater voter education, and greater voter participation (very much needed in Democratic-Machine controlled Chicagoland).
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ANDREW FINKO
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T T O R N E Y A T
P . O . C h i c a g o , T e l : F a x : ( 7 7 3 ) ( 7 7 3 )
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4 8 0 - 0 6 1 6 4 5 3 - 3 2 6 6
G r e e n . A t t o r n e y @ y a h o o . c o m
October 12, 2010 Via Email Delivery Phil Ponce, Carol Marin, Hosts, Chicago Tonight Mary Field, Executive Producer, Chicago Tonight Jay T. Smith, Supervising Producer, Chicago Tonight Jay Shefsky, Sr. Producer, Chicago Tonight Daniel J. Schmidt, President and CEO Window to the World, Inc. (WTTW) 5400 N St. Louis Avenue Chicago, Illinois 60625-4698 Jay D. Doherty, President, City Club of Chicago Anthony A. Cole, Director, Board of Governors, City Club Paul Green, Board of Governors City Club of Chicago Eugene Zelek Jr., Registered Agent (Freeborn & Peters) City Club of Chicago, Inc. 360 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 903 Chicago, IL 60601 Re: Dear Civic Leaders of Chicago: Twice in one day – I am again writing to you on behalf of Green Party candidates, LeAlan Jones and Rich Whitney. My civic duty compels me to do everything within my power to promote greater voter participation and voter education, and to exhaust all avenues to ensure that voters are able to hear from all established party candidates, so they are able to think and decide for themselves, who is the best candidate. This year is a banner year for voters, who finally have more than two choices – not quite rivaling the choices they have for consumer purchases, or television channels, but a definite improvement. Nonetheless, since time is short before the scheduled candidate feature segments hosted by WTTW-CCC, in my haste, I inadvertently omitted a citation to the US Code that was in a prior draft of my letter. For your review, 47 USC §312(a)(7), is the license revocation procedure which is referenced in my earlier letter: (a) Revocation of station license or construction permit The Commission may revoke any station license or construction permit— * * * (7) for willful or repeated failure to allow reasonable access to or to permit purchase of reasonable amounts of time for the use of a broadcasting station, other than a noncommercial educational broadcast station, by a legally qualified candidate for Federal elective office on behalf of his candidacy. Partisan Political Activity State and US Senate Debates
ANDREW FINKO
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T T O R N E Y A T
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Civic Leaders of Chicago WTTW – City Club of Chicago October 12, 2010 Page 2 The terms “willful” (conscious and deliberate, irrespective of any intent to violate any provisions) and “repeated” (essentially, more than once) are defined in 47 USC §312(f). The additional citation is the provision which specifically requires “equal access” for “legally qualified” candidates, found at 47 USC §315(a), which I am attaching for your convenience, though I am sure you are already quite familiar with these requirements. In relevant part, 47 USC §315(a) provides the following: (a) Equal opportunities requirement; censorship prohibition; allowance of station use; news appearances exception; public interest; public issues discussion opportunities If any licensee shall permit any person who is a legally qualified candidate for any public office to use a broadcasting station, he shall afford equal opportunities to all other such candidates for that office in the use of such broadcasting station: Provided, That such licensee shall have no power of censorship over the material broadcast under the provisions of this section. (continued) Please provide the requisite “equal access” to Rich Whitney and LeAlan Jones, who are not only “legally qualified candidates” that will appear on the ballot, but candidates from a growing “established political party” in Illinois that represents a growing number of voters discontent with the track record of the establishment's two parties. The voters will continue to appreciate the candor, truthfulness and journalistic integrity of WTTW even more, knowing that you are on their side. Thank you. Sincerely,
Andrew Finko cc: LeAlan Jones, Candidate for US Senate Rich Whitney, Candidate for Governor Phil Huckelberry, ILGP Chair
A
T T O R N E Y A T
P . O . C h i c a g o , T e l : F a x : ( 7 7 3 ) ( 7 7 3 )
B o x I L
2 2 4 9 6 0 6 9 0
L
A W
4 8 0 - 0 6 1 6 4 5 3 - 3 2 6 6
G r e e n . A t t o r n e y @ y a h o o . c o m
October 12, 2010 Via Email Delivery Phil Ponce, Carol Marin, Hosts, Chicago Tonight Mary Field, Executive Producer, Chicago Tonight Jay T. Smith, Supervising Producer, Chicago Tonight Jay Shefsky, Sr. Producer, Chicago Tonight Daniel J. Schmidt, President and CEO Window to the World, Inc. (WTTW) 5400 N St. Louis Avenue Chicago, Illinois 60625-4698 Jay D. Doherty, President, City Club of Chicago Anthony A. Cole, Director, Board of Governors, City Club Paul Green, Board of Governors City Club of Chicago Eugene Zelek Jr., Registered Agent (Freeborn & Peters) City Club of Chicago, Inc. 360 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 903 Chicago, IL 60601 Re: Dear Civic Leaders of Chicago: Twice in one day – I am again writing to you on behalf of Green Party candidates, LeAlan Jones and Rich Whitney. My civic duty compels me to do everything within my power to promote greater voter participation and voter education, and to exhaust all avenues to ensure that voters are able to hear from all established party candidates, so they are able to think and decide for themselves, who is the best candidate. This year is a banner year for voters, who finally have more than two choices – not quite rivaling the choices they have for consumer purchases, or television channels, but a definite improvement. Nonetheless, since time is short before the scheduled candidate feature segments hosted by WTTW-CCC, in my haste, I inadvertently omitted a citation to the US Code that was in a prior draft of my letter. For your review, 47 USC §312(a)(7), is the license revocation procedure which is referenced in my earlier letter: (a) Revocation of station license or construction permit The Commission may revoke any station license or construction permit— * * * (7) for willful or repeated failure to allow reasonable access to or to permit purchase of reasonable amounts of time for the use of a broadcasting station, other than a noncommercial educational broadcast station, by a legally qualified candidate for Federal elective office on behalf of his candidacy. Partisan Political Activity State and US Senate Debates
ANDREW FINKO
A
T T O R N E Y A T
L
A W
Civic Leaders of Chicago WTTW – City Club of Chicago October 12, 2010 Page 2 The terms “willful” (conscious and deliberate, irrespective of any intent to violate any provisions) and “repeated” (essentially, more than once) are defined in 47 USC §312(f). The additional citation is the provision which specifically requires “equal access” for “legally qualified” candidates, found at 47 USC §315(a), which I am attaching for your convenience, though I am sure you are already quite familiar with these requirements. In relevant part, 47 USC §315(a) provides the following: (a) Equal opportunities requirement; censorship prohibition; allowance of station use; news appearances exception; public interest; public issues discussion opportunities If any licensee shall permit any person who is a legally qualified candidate for any public office to use a broadcasting station, he shall afford equal opportunities to all other such candidates for that office in the use of such broadcasting station: Provided, That such licensee shall have no power of censorship over the material broadcast under the provisions of this section. (continued) Please provide the requisite “equal access” to Rich Whitney and LeAlan Jones, who are not only “legally qualified candidates” that will appear on the ballot, but candidates from a growing “established political party” in Illinois that represents a growing number of voters discontent with the track record of the establishment's two parties. The voters will continue to appreciate the candor, truthfulness and journalistic integrity of WTTW even more, knowing that you are on their side. Thank you. Sincerely,
Andrew Finko cc: LeAlan Jones, Candidate for US Senate Rich Whitney, Candidate for Governor Phil Huckelberry, ILGP Chair
