McClatchy, the publisher of several North Carolina newspapers, refused to allow the National Republican Senatorial Committee to place ads that targeted Democratic Senate candidate Cal Cunningham’s sexting scandal and affair.
The news organization offered little explanation for the rejection other than that the claims were “not able to be substantiated by our reporting” despite the same ad being run on eight television stations in the Charlotte and Greensboro markets and McClatchy’s own Raleigh News & Observer being listed as a source in some of the NRSC’s ad material.
Emails and a voicemail shared with the Washington Examiner by the NRSC show that on Tuesday afternoon a McClatchy account representative emailed a representative for the NRSC referencing a conversation they had about ad inventory through Oct. 27 for video and banner advertisements on the Charlotte Observer and Raleigh News & Observer websites.
The representative for the NRSC provided a link to the video, which focused on the recent revaluation of Cunningham’s affair — a subject that has become a major point of attack by supporters of his opponent, incumbent Republican Sen. Thom Tillis.
“Cal Cunningham talks honor, but he’s just another political hypocrite,” a narrator says. “Reckless lies. Dangerous judgment.”
It then shows flashes of news reports covering the scandal: “’Not only was he sexting with one mistress, but now there’s a second mistress.’ ‘Naked photos.’ ‘Mr. Cunningham chose to repeatedly engage in activities that would hurt his family, and a fellow junior officer and veteran.’”
? New NRSC ad in #NCSen@CalforNC was engaged in more than one extramarital affair… and refuses to give North Carolinians the truth. He’s not who he says he is. #ncpol pic.twitter.com/EpsiyQ8F5F
— The Senate Majority (@NRSC) October 13, 2020
On Wednesday afternoon, the McClatchy ad representative responded: “The Video was not approved. Management and Legal declined the ad. I never received the standard banner ads. Do you have the banner ads to submit?”
“Thanks for letting me know. I’ve attached the display ads here, can you see if they would let us run these instead?” the NRSC representative responded, also providing a click-through link from the ad to an NRSC-created website, CluelessCal.com.
The website in bold letters says, “Cal Cunningham, another hypocrite politician” and “CAUGHT: Cal Cunningham Affair Exposed.” It includes the NRSC video, screenshots of the suggestive texts between him and his mistress, and headlines from a number of news stories about the scandal from local television stations, the Washington Post, the Associated Press, the Washington Examiner, and Fox News.
One of the headlines was from McClatchy’s own Raleigh-based News & Observer: “‘I’ve Said What I’m Going To Say.’ Cunningham Won’t Answer Questions About Scandal.”
On Thursday morning, the NRSC representative followed up in an email.
“Just checking in to ensure you all have what you need from our end so we can get this campaign rolling. Only 19 days before the election with tons of votes already cast so there is a bit of urgency on this campaign. Let us know, thanks!”
Eleven minutes later, the McClatchy ad representative said: “The ads were not approved to run. Sorry.”
“Was there any specific reason they gave as to why they were disapproved?” the NRSC representative asked. “The Observer’s own reporting was used to substantiate the ads, so the client was hoping to get some feedback as to why they wouldn’t run the ads.”
The McClatchy representative said that she did not get any feedback on the problems with the ads, at which point the NRSC representative asked if there was someone at the News & Observer whom they could talk to.
Tony Berg, a senior vice president at McClatchy, later left a voicemail for the NRSC representative.
“This is Tony Berg from McClatchy responding to your note of why we disapproved the ad. Not all the claims have been substantiated by our reporting, and we are unable to take that ad,” he said. “So, I – especially when you link to the website, there are claims on there that we are not able to substantiate. If you’d like to talk to me, you can feel free to give me a call back, I’m at [redacted]. Thank you.”
It is unusual for digital ads to be rejected by publishers in this fashion, according to the NRSC. If a television or newspaper ad is challenged, it most often by a third party, at which point, the publisher asks for verification of the claims. Rejections of digital ads sometimes happen due to automated systems.
McClatchy’s rejection marks the first time in this election cycle that an NRSC independent expenditure was outright rejected after appealing directly to an individual.
“McClatchy always reserves the right to refuse any advertising submitted for publication,” a spokesman for the publisher told the Washington Examiner in a statement on Friday.
The editorial board for the Charlotte Observer, a McClatchy publication, eviscerated Cunningham in an editorial after news of his affair broke, and the candidate went silent for days.
“Beyond the obvious questions about morality and marriage, the messages show a concerning lack of judgment on Cunningham’s part. How could a U.S. Senate candidate risk so much, not only personally but in a race that could swing the balance of power in Congress?” the editorial board wrote. “The messages also hint at an arrogance and self-centeredness that we’ve seen too much of in Washington and in the White House. What mattered to Cunningham was himself, not the people counting on him and his candidacy.”
