At the heart of every political campaign is the engine that drives each candidate’s messaging: the media. With a last-minute switch in the Democratic party’s strategy leading up to November 5, both leading candidates employed a number of different strategies to reach undecided voters, including using the media. While each party accessed its favorite media channels to spread its message, it appeared at times like the media was being used unfairly. However, the checks and balances that exist in any strong democracy ensured, where possible, that this was not the case.
A perfect example of this came just days before the 2024 presidential election. Saturday Night Live is an American television late night comedy show that often portrays political figures in a comedic sketch. However, it is rare that the political figures themselves appear on the show; instead, they are played by actors who imitate them. On November 2, three days before election Tuesday, SNL aired the last episode of their political series starring Maya Rudolph as Kamala Harris. The video started with James Austin Johnson, playing Donald Trump, talking at a political rally. The camera was then shifted to “Harris” watching the rally on the television after a fictional event in Pennsylvania. After a discussion with “Doug Emhoff,” played by Andy Samberg, Rudolph made her way to a table. Looking in the mirror she said, “I just wish I could talk to someone who’s been in my shoes, you know, a Black, South Asian woman running for president, preferably from the Bay Area.” As she finished her sentence, Rudolph was greeted by Vice President Kamala Harris on the other side of the “mirror.” This appearance of the presidential candidate is what angered several Donald Trump supporters. According to the FCC Equal Time Rule, American television and radio broadcasts must provide equal access to competing political opponents. This rule states that candidates must be given the opportunity of equal air time to promote their campaign. Harris appearing on SNL was perceived as unfair air time, with Trump having no opportunity to request a similar slot on SNL before election day. Brendan Carr, the senior Republican on the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), called the incident a “clear and blatant effort to evade the FCC’s Equal Time rule.” Thankfully, all parties were able to agree on a solution and Donald Trump’s campaign ads were aired on NBC twice to provide equal air time to both candidates.
In this instance, the media, though initially being perceived as being partial to one candidate, ultimately fairly resolved the inequity. With different media streams reaching different demographics, the influence of media in political campaigns is growing. While being highly effective and powerful, this utilization of media can also be detrimental if it’s not handled responsibly. This includes the spreading of fake news. Spreading unverified, inaccurate or untruthful data about an individual or a political party can hurt democracy. Given the wide reach of media and social media, it is not uncommon for people to believe these untruths and half-truths. These fabrications can spread quickly due to the wide network of social media, and can lead to the candidates’ reputations being tarnished. So while the media plays a vital and powerful role in politics, as is often said, with great power comes great responsibility, and it is important that information that is shared is always objective, verified, and validated, and all media streams share and broadcast opinions with respect and factual accuracy.
