Following GOP front-runner Donald Trump’s appearance this month on “Saturday Night Live,” NBC has agreed to give an equal amount of free airtime to four Republican presidential candidates next week, a network spokesperson told CNNMoney.
Ohio Gov. John Kasich, former Govs. Mike Huckabee of Arkansas and Jim Gilmore of Virginia, and Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., will be given 12-minutes-worth of free ad time in Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, the report added.
“In compliance with FCC regulations, NBC has come to an agreement … on each candidate’s equal time requests following Donald Trump’s appearance on SNL on Nov. 7,” the NBC spokesperson said.
The ads will air on Nov. 27 and Nov. 28, including during “Saturday Night Live.” The ads will be shown during primetime hours.
The network’s deal was apparently not good enough for former New York Gov. George Pataki, who ultimately turned down NBC’s offer. A spokesperson for the former governor’s campaign said they are going to continue to lobby NBC, and that they hope to hit on an agreeable deal soon.
“NBC had reached out to the five campaigns last week with initial offers for ‘equal time,’ which varied based on the campaigns’ requests,” CNNMoney reported. “The Kasich and Huckabee campaigns had requested time on NBC’s national broadcast, whereas the Pataki and Graham campaigns sought time in early primary states (and, in Pataki’s case, New York). The other presidential candidates did not file a request for equal time.”
Candidates are entitled equal airtime to any event that doesn’t qualify as a news event, according to FCC regulations.
“The candidates are not necessarily entitled to the same platform,” CNNMoney reported. “Trump appeared on ‘Saturday Night Live’ on Nov. 7 for a total of 12 minutes and 5 seconds. The episode drew 9.3 million viewers, SNL’s largest audience in years.”
