Tonight Show accused of favoring Arnold

Since Schwarzenegger got Leno, I have read that Angelides wants his fair turn. Well, he was on the Adam Carolla show with 80's glam band WARRANT. It was asked if he was going to sing,"Cherry Pie". He did not but that would be really funny if he sang "Cherry Pie" with WARRANT on the Tonight Show!!!

Well, this all depends, doesn't it? I didn't see the show (Leno sucks), but I imagine it would be different if Arnold was promoting a new movie or talking about his wife and kids as opposed to, say, debating illegal immigration or the state of California schools. That would, I imagine, determine whether the appearance qualifies as a news interview or not.

"As a Califorinia voter, I watched the show last night in amazement. Angelides is right to be yelling and screaming. It was a 20 minute unpaid political ad that the Schwartzenegger campaign didn't pay for."

It's called "earned media". Campaigns don't have to be pay for it.

Law does not state that Angelides is owed equal time.

I don't beleive Leno had Arnold on because he believes in his political agenda. I think he had him on because of ratings. Arnie is going to bring in a lot better ratings than Angelides. Still, if law states that he has to have equal time, he may have a point. I am just not sure at what date that law starts. I always thought it was two weeks out from an election, but perhaps not.

"I remember before the last election, California stations didn't show any Schwartzenegger films because of those FCC regulations."

Completely false. The equal time laws do not apply in such a case. Stations that didn't show any of his movies during that time were just being overly cautious.

Also, the equal time rules, as written, clearly do not apply to the Tonight Show. "The rules do not apply to news programs, interview shows and documentaries in which the candidate is not the sole focus."

Schwarzenegger, because of his movie career, has some interest to a national audience even though he is running for a local state office. Remember, the Tonight Show is a national TV show, not a California only show.

Angelides on the other hand would have no interest to anyone outside California, and judging by the pole numbers, there isn't much interest in him in California either. The Tonight Show not putting him on is about ratings, not politics.

-Keith

Johnny Carson never had these problems. He kept The Tonight Show independent and kept it from showing favoritism to either political party.

Phil Angelides is right though. I say David Letterman should invite Phil Angelides on The Late Show and get some free press out of this incident.

People that were watching show in Califronia were probably watching it for Arnold and would vote him anyways. Big deal. Get over it girlie men. Does anyone actually watch Leno anymore anyways?

The Tonight Show is an entertainment show.

Watching Phil Angelides would not be entertaining (and I am a California Liberal--we needed a better candidate).

Since news interviews have been exempt from the equal time rules for almost half a century, it seems odd that NBC is choosing this route to take. By claiming they are not news, they could be required under the law to offer equal time as did any station that aired Ronald Reagan movies during his campaigns.