I thought it might be interesting for American Kossacks to see a British "Party Political Broadcast" (PPB) that is running on the main TV channels BBC Two, ITV1 and BBC One (in that order) tonight in the UK.
The PPB forms part of the run up to the elections to the European Parliament later this year and confronts the anti-European sentiment being invoked by the other main parties. In effect, it is selling the idea of the EU by showing examples of how membership helps real individuals. This could easily translate into a format that Democrats in the USA could use to go on the attack against opponents of Obamacare (and call it that!) in the mid-term elections in November.
More information on PPBs below the fold.
PPBs fall into two categories - those during the three-week official campaigning period before elections and those in the periods in between. All are broadcast free by the main terrestrial services from the BBC and ITV (the first of the old analog channels that form part of a wider offer and are also available on satellite and cable free). During election periods, the other "public service broadcasters" Channel 4 and Five (again old analog services) plus Sky News carry the "election broadcasts".
All forms of paid for political advertisements are banned in the UK. Political parties are allocated the number and length of their PPBs according to a formula agreed in Parliament that takes account of electoral success. The election broadcasts' formula also takes account of the number of candidates each party is fielding - so minority parties not represented in Parliament but with a large number of candidates (the United Kingdom Independence Party. UKIP, and the British National Party, BNP for example have had election broadcasts for general elections).
Parties are free to decide the topic of their broadcasts and, as with this one, can use the PPBs for electioneering. They are expected to follow broadcasting guidelines but write, direct and produce their own content. (An example of this might be the broadcasters refusing to show acts of violence if the broadcast was before the 9pm "watershed").
The political parties are not charged for airtime but do obviously have to pay for the production of the PPB. Production can either be by the party's own resources or by advertising agencies paid by them (Saachi and Saachi were famous responsible for Thatcher's campaigns). Often party members in the advertising industry or TV and film making volunteer their services - John Cleese did a series for the Liberal Democrats. In the case of this PPB, it is part of a wider pro-EU campaign and members were asked to send emails or tweet to #whyiamIN I presume those featuring in the PPB were recruited that way.
p.s. I have timed the publication of this diary to coincide with the first showing on BBC Two in the UK to respect the voluntary embargo on the Youtube page.