I found my copy of Access San Francisco Policies and Procedures
Manual, and quote the following which might apply to Starchild's
proposed ads:
"Producers shall not cablecast programming that contains commercial
content. Commercial content is any display, announcement, and/or
reference designed to promote the sale of any products, services,
enterprises, or event. Commercial promotion is any direct or indirect
call to action."
"Programs cannot become infomercials, that is, information provided
with the underlying purpose to promote the sale of the item or service."
Marcy
--- In lpsf-discuss@yahoogroups.com, "Amarcy D. Berry" <amarcyb@...>
wrote:
Hi Starchild,
Thank you for the idea of running the ads. However, I would have to
vote "No" at this time, since I do not know the policies of S.F. Cable
Access TV on running ads. It is interesting that the ads were pulled
from the Time Warner Cable channels, which to me would translate into
call for a little caution on the part of the LPSF.
Marcy
>
> I think it would be cool to try to get copies of these commercials
and
> run them on our own public access show (see item below). We could
issue
> a press release about it and possibly get some good publicity. Can
we
> get an ExCom vote authorizing this? While not a super time-sensitive
> item, probably the sooner the better for news value, and I see no
> reason to wait till next meeting as I don't expect it to be
> controversial among our group. If it's a go, I'll contact the
Marijuana
> Anti-Prohibition Project and seek to have them send us copies to air.
>
> Love & liberty,
> <<< starchild >>>
>
>
>
> > From: "Brett Stone" <zz4320@>
> > Date: Thu Aug 17, 2006 7:27:46 AM US/Pacific
> > To: "CC ASA" <central-ca@>, "Dale Gieringer"
> > <canorml@>, dpfca@, "LA ASA"
> > <losangeles@>,
> > northern-ca@,
> > sanfrancisco@, "SD ASA"
> > <sandiego@>
> > Subject: [sanfrancisco] Cable company pulls medical marijuana ads
> >
> > BACKGROUND: This is a follow up story to the item posted at
> > http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/mmjnews/message/424 in the
group.
> >
> > Cable company pulls medical marijuana ads
> >
> > WATCH THE COMMERCIALS
> >
> > Marijuana: Compassion and Common Sense" is being aired on several
> > cable access channels in Riverside County and the Los Angeles area:
> >
> > Nurse Appears In Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Commercial
> > The Desert Sun | Palm Springs and Coachella Valley news
> > 0816_marijuana1_VIDEO.pbs
> >
> > Physician discusses use of medical marijuana
> > The Desert Sun | Palm Springs and Coachella Valley news
> > 0816_marijuana2_VIDEO.pbs
> >
> > Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Commercial
> > The Desert Sun | Palm Springs and Coachella Valley news
> > 0816_marijuana3_VIDEO.pbs
> >
> > WHERE TO SEE IT
> >
> > Coachella Valley: Time Warner Channel 18, 11 p.m. Tuesday, Friday
and
> > Saturday
> > Desert Hot Springs: Adelphia Channel 10, 11 p.m. Tuesday and
Thursday.
> > Yucca Valley and Twentynine Palms: Adelphia Channel 6, 9 p.m.
Tuesday,
> > Friday and Saturday.
> > Temecula: Adelphia Channel 3, 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.
> > Glendale, Burbank, La Crescenta, Montrose, Flintridge: Charter Cable
> > Channel 25, 10:30 p.m. Thursday.
> > Hollywood, Culver City, Marina Del Ray, Venice: Time Warner Channel
> > 24, 11 p.m. Friday.
> >
> > Source: Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project
> >
> > K Kaufmann
> > The Desert Sun
> > August 17, 2006
> >
> > Time Warner Cable Desert Cities has pulled the plug on three ads
> > promoting medical marijuana that were scheduled to debut Friday on
> > four popular cable channels in the Coachella Valley.
> >
> > The ads, produced by the Marijuana Anti-Prohibition Project, a local
> > medical marijuana advocacy group, had been scheduled to run every
> > other week for three months on Comedy Central, MSNBC, the Travel
> > Channel and Home and Garden Television, said Lanny Swerdlow, the
> > group's president.
> >
> > "They are censoring speech that they don't approve of. They
should not
> > be doing that," said Swerdlow, who found out about the cancellation
> > only after being called by a reporter Wednesday. "They should be in
> > the business of fostering new ideas, not trying to squelch them," he
> > said.
> >
> > Swerdlow said he had signed a contract with Time Warner on Aug.
7 and
> > paid the company for the first month. The contract allows the
company
> > to cancel the ads, but only with 14 days' prior notice, he said.
> >
> > Swerdlow also expects a full refund of the money.
> >
> > Cable access show still on
> >
> > Kathi Jacobs, public affairs director for Time Warner, did not
give a
> > reason for the cancellation. "The ads have been turned down," Jacobs
> > said. "They will not be aired."
> >
> > But, she said, Time Warner will continue to run "Marijuana:
Compassion
> > and Common Sense," the half-hour show MAPP airs in the Coachella
> > Valley at 11 p.m. Tuesdays, Fridays and Saturdays on cable access
> > Channel 18.
> >
> > The company has no control over content on the cable access channel,
> > Jacobs said, beyond scheduling the show outside of prime-time hours.
> >
> > While the use of doctor-prescribed medical marijuana is legal in
> > California thanks to a proposition passed by the voters, under
federal
> > law, any use of marijuana is illegal.
> >
> > The Food and Drug Administration issued a statement in April
> > reiterating its long-held position that marijuana has no medicinal
> > value.
> >
> > The canceled ads sought to counter that view.
> >
> > One is a pitch for the cable access show, which consists mostly of
> > interviews with patients, researchers and medical professionals. The
> > other two ads feature medical professionals - Dr. Philip A.
Denney in
> > one and Anna T. Boyce, a registered nurse, in the other - talking
> > about the benefits of medical marijuana.
> >
> > Boyce is one of the original sponsors of Proposition 215, the 1996
> > ballot initiative that legalized medical marijuana in California.
> >
> > Speaking before the cancellation, she said, "I'm hoping that whoever
> > listens to the ads, if they have a plugged mind, (this) will
open it."
