CNN refused to air an ad for the political documentary ‘2016: Obama’s America.’ The network and the film’s producers gave differing reasons why the ad was rejected.
John Sullivan, executive producer of the conservative documentary said CNN would not air the ad because the network said it was “too political.”
CNN’s spokesperson responded to Sullivan’s comments with a statement to EW, saying: “CNN did not reject the ad. We asked them to explain why they believe the ad is not subject to political advertising disclosure requirements, and we did not hear back from them with any explanation.”
The network was concerned that the ads for the film were in violation of a Federal Election Commission rule stating that telecasts advocating for the election or defeat of a political candidate must reveal their funding sources.
The issue here is whether or not advertisements for a political documentary qualify as political ads under the Federal Election Commission rule.
Ads for the film aired on MSNBC, Fox News, Discovery Channel and A&E, which helped to make ‘Obama’s America’ the no.2 film last weekend, second only to ‘The Expendables 2.’
An MSNBC spokesman said that the ad ran without a disclaimer, like a regular movie ad.
‘Obama’s America,’ based on the best-selling book ‘The Roots of Obamas Rage,’ by Dinesh D’Souza, has already grossed $10.5 million at the box office.
Take a look at the controversial ad below:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CdOQLqKsKJI
