WASHINGTON – With each election cycle, many of WND's visitors express shock at various forms of political advertising they find on the site.
In other words, some are "shocked, shocked" to find political viewpoints expressed on one of the largest news sites carrying political news.
The 2010 midterm election is no exception.
Most of those contacting WND are surprised to see advertising promoting Democratic Party candidates for Congress, which seems in contrast to the news service's avowed skepticism toward bigger and more intrusive government and the policies of those in power in Washington.
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Joseph Farah, editor and chief executive officer of WND, offered the following statement of clarification:
"WND has always accepted all legitimate political advertising – we always have and we always will," he said. "During the 2008 presidential race, for instance, Barack Obama ads ran side by side with John McCain ads – even though I authored a book called 'None of the Above' and was perhaps the most outspoken advocate of not casting a vote for either major-party candidate. To understand our position requires an understanding of our mission as the leading independent news service on the Internet."
Farah explained that unregulated free political expression is at the heart of that mission. That mission includes providing what he contends is the broadest forum of political commentary to be found anywhere – from Nat Hentoff and Bill Press on the left to Ann Coulter and Pat Buchanan on the right.
"You don't have to agree with Joseph Farah to get your views aired on WND – not in the commentary section, not in the letters to the editor, not in the public forums and certainly not in political advertising," Farah explained. "We have attempted to buy advertising with political messages in other media and been turned down. We were quite shocked and disturbed when that happened. Certainly it would be hypocritical for us to do the same."
Farah reminds that the First Amendment was primarily adopted by America's founding fathers because they wanted to protect political speech. That's why he has denounced so-called "campaign-finance reform" laws that strictly regulate and limit political advertising. He considers such laws to be clear violations of the First Amendment.
"WND advertising messages should never imply endorsement – especially political ads," explained Farah. "WND commentators, including me, make their views clear in their columns and videos. None of them, including mine, necessarily reflect the corporate positions of WND. WND has rarely ever offered corporate positions in the form of editorials, like most newspapers do. That's because WND is and always will be primarily a news source. Commentary and political opinions are secondary to the primary mission of breaking news. This commitment and characterization distinguishes WND from many other websites and many other news organizations – perhaps even most of them."
Farah also reminds that, unlike any other news pioneer on the Net, he spent his entire professional career in the news business as a reporter, editor, top news executive and publisher and attempted, 14 years ago, to carry over the highest standards and practices from the old world of newspapering into the new medium of the Internet.
"We're doing the same thing we set out to do – with the same standards, the same mission," he added. "We're not an opinion site, like so many others out there. We are an independent news operation like no other in the world. There is no litmus test for the expression of political viewpoints at WND – unlike most other websites and media organizations. So, certainly, there has never been any temptation to ban political advertising based on the views of anyone at WND."