Local Station Won't Run Misleading Ad!

NYC mayor's gun ad is shot down in Kansas

By SARA KUGLER



The CBS affiliate station in Wichita, Kan., is refusing to air a television advertisement that is part of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's gun control campaign, saying the spot is misleading.

Bloomberg's administration shot back, questioning the station's objectivity.

The advertisement, which debuted Sunday, urges the repeal of a piece of congressional legislation preventing federal authorities from sharing gun trace data with cities and local law enforcement.

The measure, known as the Tiahrt Amendment, is attached to appropriations bills and essentially must be redone each year. The National Rifle Association says it protects the privacy of gun owners, but Bloomberg argues that it hampers the ability of law enforcement authorities to trace illegal guns and arrest weapons traffickers.

The spot urging its repeal is airing in the congressional districts of the Democrat and the Republican who lead the House subcommittee considering the amendment. It was set to appear on a CBS affiliate in the Kansas district of Republican Rep. Todd Tiahrt, who authored the measure.

Tiahrt supports some changes to the language and is working with the Bloomberg administration to get that done, a spokesman for the congressman said.

The ad debuted during Sunday's political talk shows on NBC, ABC and CBS and later on CNN, MSNBC and Fox News Channel. The CBS affiliate in Wichita chose not to air it, according to KWCH director of programming Laverne E. Goering.

"This is issue advertising, where the station is responsible for the truth or fairness of the ad, unlike political advertising, where the politicians can pretty much say what they want," Goering said.

The spot features the Chaska, Minn., chief of police, Scott Knight, who says that the federal legislation prevents him from being able to adequately fight gun violence.

"Where are the guns coming from, who's buying them, how are they getting into my city -- the information is there," he says. "We're not allowed to have it."

KWCH said the ad is misleading because the amendment allows law enforcement to have specific gun data for criminal investigations or prosecution.

The Bloomberg administration does not dispute that, but it wants access to aggregate data that might help officials understand trends or see gun trafficking patterns across jurisdictions.

The ad buy is part of a campaign launched by Bloomberg's nationwide coalition of Mayors Against Illegal Guns.

Deputy Mayor Ed Skyler said Monday that the station's decision "raises real questions about the objectivity of this news organization that they would deprive their viewers from hearing from over 200 mayors and dozens of American law enforcement organizations."

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