Letter: We might all be better informed with '5/30 standard'

This opinion appears to be based on the broadcast networks' disinterest in covering the presidential primary debates, leaving coverage to C-SPAN, CNN, MSNBC and Fox. Jacoby goes on to disparage efforts of the Alliance for Better Campaigns to implement the "5/30 standard" which encourages (not obligates, as Jacoby implies) television stations (individually, not the networks) to devote five minutes nightly to "candidate discourse" during the last 30 days prior to Election Day.

The concentration on the presidential campaigns causes Jacoby to miss the point. Candidates Al Gore, George W. Bush, John McCain and Bill Bradley will have no trouble getting their messages (in slickly produced 30-second ads) across to the public. The aforementioned candidates are unlikely to volunteer themselves to unscripted exposure anyway. The Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada, in association with the Alliance for Better Campaigns, is promoting the 5/30 standard with the goal of leveling the playing field for lesser-known (and funded) candidates at all levels.

We are fortunate in Nevada to have broadcasters who do believe in an obligation to serve the public interest in this way. Stations KOLO-TV, KRNV-TV and KNPB-TV (Reno) and AT&T cable (Northern Nevada) have programs in place such as KIDSVOTE and ADWATCH as well as debates, interviews and other forums. However, some stations have other views ("I don't want to and you can't make me").

Neither PLAN nor the Alliance for Better Campaigns are making threats (implied or otherwise). The networks are justified in optimizing their profits. Television stations can volunteer five minutes a day for 30 days without damaging the bottom line or denying "Wheel Of Fortune" to their viewers. And we all might be better informed for it.

KATHLEEN M. DICKINSON

Project Manager for the Alliance for Better Campaigns, Progressive Leadership Alliance of Nevada

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