If ever there were a reason for former Tennessee senator Fred Thompson not to run for president, this could be it: If he runs, networks will probably not air reruns of Law & Order, on which Thompson played DA Arthur Branch, to avoid having to give Thompson’s opponents equal air time, as mandated by the FCC.
In the past, networks have not aired programming featuring Ronald Reagan and Arnold Schwarzennegger during their campaigns.
According to the Washington Post, there’s still time to Tivo all the L&O you can before this possible drought: “But even if Thompson announces that he’s getting in the race, the equal-time provisions — and the blackout for the reruns — would not immediately kick in. The law applies only to candidates whose names appear on official state ballots, a step that none of the candidates have yet taken.”