Senate OKs Discount Campaign Ads

WASHINGTON — The Senate today overwhelmingly approved legislation that would force broadcasters to give candidates deep discounts in television and radio advertising as a way to hold down campaign costs. There has been a movement away from requiring free broadcast time in favor of discounted time, and a measure pushed by Sens. Robert Torricelli, D-N.J., Richard Durbin, D-Ill., Jon Corzine, D-N.J., and Byron Dorgan, D-N.D., was approved on a 70-30 vote. The measure would require broadcasters to sell time to federal candidates for political commercials at the lowest price for which the time has sold during the previous year.