• by Wendy Davis  @wendyndavis, August 18, 2008

The Federal Election Commission has reaffirmed that online media outlets can advocate on behalf of particular candidates without falling subject to campaign finance restrictions.

The agency said last week it dismissed a complaint by a Hillary Clinton supporter alleging that a pro-Barack Obama blog was actually "a direct arm" of the Obama campaign, and therefore subject to campaign finance restrictions.

In its ruling, the FEC reiterated that whatever costs are incurred by running a political blog need not be disclosed as a campaign contribution. "Political blogging is exactly the type of Internet activity that the Commission exempted from the definition of 'contribution' and 'expenditure,'" the FEC stated.

The complaint was brought last October by Clinton supporter Kirk Tofte, who alleged that the blog Iowa True Blue, operated by former Iowa Democratic Party chairman Gordon Fischer, had coordinated with Obama's campaign. Tofte alleged that Fischer endorsed Obama in September, after which he began posting critical items about Clinton.

"Gordon Fischer's Web site has ceased being just another political blog," Tofte wrote in the complaint. "Since 9/24/07 it has been one hundred percent negative against Hillary Clinton."

The FEC rejected the contention that Fischer had coordinated efforts with Obama. But the agency also held that even had he done so, it would not have triggered campaign finance restrictions.

"Any coordination would have been permissible ... because the activity was specifically exempted from the definition of 'public communication,'" the FEC stated.

Traditional media outlets have been exempt from campaign finance restrictions since 1974, but the FEC's position regarding online media was unclear until recently. In March of 2006, however, the FEC stated that online media publications were also exempt, unless they were owned by a candidate, party, or committee.

Still, the new rules have left room for argument. Last year, in one high-profile case, an FEC complaint was lodged against the left-wing blog Daily Kos. There, the FEC ruled in favor of Daily Kos, rejecting the idea that the site operates as a 'political committee' and was subject to campaign finance restrictions.

Michael Bassik, who earlier urged the FEC to adopt rules granting online journalists the same exemption from campaign finance restrictions as traditional media, praised the Iowa True Blue ruling. "It's encouraging to see the FEC continue to recognize the Internet is no different from any other medium when it comes to expressing political opinion," said Bassik, vice president of interactive marketing at Democratic communications firm MSHC Partners. "The ability to express individual ideas is not dependent on one medium or another."