Why does the Town of Londonderry restrict candidates running for Londonderry office to only running a video on LACTV to two weeks prior an election election? This policy appears to favor sitting School, Board, Town Council, Budget Committee and other elected positions, by preventing challengers from using LACTV to get the word out about there campaign.
Chapter XVI-A – ELECTION CAMPAIGN VIDEOS POLICY
Link to policy HERE
SECTION I PURPOSE
A. It is the policy of the Town of Londonderry that all political candidates shall receive equal opportunity in the access and use of the Cable Studio and its personnel and facilities in the production and airing of campaign videos.
SECTION II LIMITS/AUTHORITY
A. Equal opportunity shall include, but is not limited to: training, utilization of volunteers’ time and technical expertise, and the use of Cable Studio facilities and equipment.
B. Cable volunteers and employees shall be free from coercion for any political purposes. Employees are prohibited from using official authority or position for the purpose of seeking to interfere with or affect the result of an election or a nomination for public office.
SECTION III CREATING A VIDEO
A. Candidates will be informed as to how they can create their own campaign video in the Studio utilizing volunteers.
B. Londonderry Access Center (LAC) Staff will not produce videos for candidates.
C. Appointments for studio use are taken on a first come, first served basis, and should be made as soon as possible, but all candidates shall be allowed to produce videos.
D. Candidates’ produced videos will be limited to thirty (30) minutes in length, timed from the beginning of the video, to the end (including credits).
E. Petitioned warrant article videos will be limited to one video, recommended to be thirty (30) minutes in length. Credits must include, at a minimum, the name of the producer, and the copyright holder and year.
F. Videos must be labeled with a title and an accurate running time.
G. Candidates will be informed that it may be necessary to copy their videos for the logistical purpose of fitting all programs into the Playback Schedule.
H. Videos are not previewed by anyone. Producers and candidates take responsibility for the content and accuracy of their videos by signing a Statement of Compliance with LAC Policies.
SECTION IV VIDEO SUBMISSION AND PLAYBACK
A. Each candidate’s one video must be delivered to the LAC no later than 5:00 PM on the fourth Monday four weeks prior to the date of elections, and shall air for two weeks.
B. Videos will be aired and streamed in a block on a rotating schedule, and new videos shall be added in the order received and shall advance in the playback sequence one hour daily from the date of submission through election day.
C. Videos will be available on demand indefinitely.
SECTION V COMPLAINT PROCEDURE
Any candidate who feels aggrieved by a denial of any provision of this policy may process an appeal in accordance with the Town Council.