Billboards

This weekend, ColorOfChange, the largest online civil rights organization, launched a new petition calling on Clear Channel to remove intimidating and misleading billboard ads in Black and Latino neighborhoods in Ohio and Wisconsin. An anonymous group has started running the ads, which highlight maximum punishments for “voter fraud” that is basically nonexistent, creating a sense of fear around voting that is both dangerous and unwarranted.

The billboards are hosted by Clear Channel, a media conglomerate owned by Bain Capital — the same company that Mitt Romney co-founded. Clear Channel has tried to avoid any responsibility for the ads, saying that the group who paid for them is responsible for the content. But Clear Channel has rejected billboard ads many times in the past on the basis that they were deemed inappropriate or politically motivated.

The following is a statement from ColorOfChange Executive Director Rashad Robinson:

"Clear Channel and Bain Capital's decision to allow an anonymous advertiser to create a climate of fear around voting in Black and Latino communities is shameful. This decision speaks volumes about the values and level of integrity at Clear Channel and Bain Capital. These billboards are clearly designed to intimidate voters, and they’re part of a coordinated right-wing attack on the voting rights of people of color. In the past, ColorOfChange members and our allies have responded loud and clear to attempts to suppress our community’s vote. This situation is no exception—since Saturday, more than 41,000 people have signed our petition demanding that these billboards be taken down immediately.

Black folks will not be intimidated this election season. We demand that Clear Channel and Bain Capital stop allowing their media platforms to be used by nameless and faceless individuals and institutions seeking to send us back to the days when fear and intimidation were part of the common voting experience for many Black Americans.”

"ColorOfChange.org exists to strengthen Black America's political voice. Our goal is to empower our members - Black Americans and our allies - to make government more responsive to the concerns of Black Americans and to bring about positive political and social change for everyone."

Dear Clear Channel CEOs Bob Pittman and William Eccleshare,

I am writing to demand that you take down the billboards that have cropped up in Black and Latino neighborhoods in recent weeks and that employ tactics meant to scare people away from voting. While you may not have crafted the message, your company is in fact the messenger.

These billboards, which read "Voter Fraud is a Felony," are clearly designed to intimidate voters of color and keep those communities away from the polls. That these billboards did not appear in white or suburban neighborhoods is proof of their discriminatory nature.

Allowing an anonymous advertiser to create an atmosphere of fear around voting just as the early voting period begins is unacceptable. I ask that you remove these billboards at once. I know that in the past, you have rejected billboard ads when leadership in your company deemed the content to be politically charged. This campaign of misinformation fits that criteria and is a dangerous disservice to the Black and Latino communities in which they are placed.

Please remove these billboards immediately.

Sincerely,

[Your name]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Monday, 22 October 2012

CONTACT:
Brett Abrams (fitzgibbonmedia.com)

CLEVELAND, OHIO - Today, Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings announced that they would be removing ads from its billboards in Cleveland and Columbus that experts found were likely to suppress the votes of poor black and Latino voters.

More than 57,000 members of the SumOfUs.org community joined a campaign led by Color of Change in signing a petition calling on Clear Channel  to remove advertisements.

“Until this week, media giant Clear Channel thought it okay to make money off voter intimidation,” SumOfUs Executive Director Taren Stinebrickner-Kauffman said. “Citizen-consumers from across the world stood up and demanded Clear Channel pull the ads. We are pleased Clear Channel listened to our demands and is pulling the billboards down.”

The ads were paid for by an anonymous group and due to run until the election in November.

They will be replaced by messages encouraging people to vote, in part donated by Clear Channel. The same advertisements continue to run on Norton billboards in Cincinnati and Wisconsin.

FIND OUT MORE: http://sumofus.org/campaigns/clear-channel/?sub=pr

SumOfUs.org is a global movement of consumers, investors, and workers all around the world, standing together to hold corporations accountable for their actions and forge a new, sustainable and just path for our global economy. http://sumofus.org/about/

"We reviewed the situation, and in light of the fact that these billboards violate our policy of not accepting anonymous political ads, we asked the client how they would prefer to work with us to bring the boards into conformance with our policy. The client thought the best solution was to take the boards down, so we are in the process of removing them."

Jim Cullinan, spokesman
Clear Channel Outdoor

Ed. Note: According to CNN there were "85 Clear Channel Outdoor billboards in Milwaukee, along with 30 each in Columbus and Cleveland."  Another company, Norman, also put up some of the billboards.

Photo: ColorofChange.org