Don’t Trust TV Commercials

“I’ll take ‘Lies We Believe’ for $1000, Ken”

by Doug Smith

August 22, 2026

Americans are protected from false advertising claims by Truth in Advertising laws.  The Federal Trade Commission enforces these regulations that prohibit outright lies, misleading imagery, and material omissions across all media formats.  If an advertiser makes false claims in a commercial, they can face steep civil penalties and fines.

There’s one exception to this… political campaign advertising.  As a retired radio station manager, I’m well versed in these laws.  Campaign ads can spew the most egregious lies you can imagine, and nothing can stop them!  In fact, stations are NOT ALLOWED to edit or refuse to run political commercials because of content.  The FCC mandates that commercial broadcast stations cannot censor or reject advertisements from legally qualified federal candidates, regardless of whether the claims are factually accurate.  In other words, they can tell lies about any candidate and you’ll never know what’s true and what’s not.  All they have to do is add the disclaimer about who paid for the ad. 

Because of this, TV and radio commercials are the ABSOLUTE WORST way to learn about any candidate!  Yet, untold millions of dollars will be spent between now and November on commercials, especially negative ads, because they work!  People assume they’re truthful, because advertisers in all other contexts are forced to be, so they base extremely important votes for candidates based solely on the LEAST trustworthy medium!

And really… how lazy is that?  Just to let yourself be force-fed lies while watching TV without checking to see if they’re true, when you can easily go to any candidate’s website and find out for yourself what they’re saying and claiming.  And that goes for the propaganda you see on social media too.  I shudder to think how many people just accept as truth the most outrageous lies that get passed around on the internet. 

If you want to learn more about any candidate, talk to them, go to a town hall, look up their website, and follow them on social media.  Read and watch legitimate, professional journalists (think Associated Press or NPR.)  Do NOT rely on paid media advertising to tell you the truth! 

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