TV Stations for Truth

Since Citizens United, an increasing number of ads -- lying or otherwise -- don’t come from the candidates directly. They come from super PACs: Third-party groups that support a candidate but, at least in theory, don’t coordinate with his campaign. This is hardly a positive development for our republic. But the silver-lining is that, as the Annenberg Public Policy Center explains on its fact-check site, independent groups are not guaranteed the same access to airwaves as candidates for federal office. TV stations have every right to reject third-party ads. Broadcasters are not exactly printing money these days, so expecting them to turn down money from the super PACs is like expecting the politicians to turn it down. Instead of rejecting an ad outright, however, they can take a more modest step: They can insist on edits for the sake of accuracy. Shocking, right?