WASHINGTON -- The Citizens Party Tuesday began airing network radio commercials using a vulgarism to describe the choice among the three major presidential candidates.
Radio stations in Washington and other cities reported switchboards flooded with calls protesting the language of the ad, which seeks votes for Citizens Party presidential candidate Barry Commoner.
The 60-second spots were aired on CBS and NBC radio.
They begin with a man saying: 'Bullshit.'
A woman says: 'What?'
Man: 'Carter, Reagan, Anderson. It's all bullshit.'
The ad then picks up Commoner describing the party platform and urging votes for him and running-mate LaDonna Harris.
'It was a consensus of key people in the party that the word 'bullshit' accurately reflected what Carter, Reagan and Anderson are saying in this election and what many millions of Americans are saying, and it is the term many of them used to describe the choice,' said Phil Evans, Commoner's press secretary.
An FCC spokesman said Section 315 of the Communications Act bars censorship of political material provided by candidates.
'The policy is this: candidates ought to be able to address the electorate in the manner they think best, and not filtered through the editorial judgment of the broadcaster,' said FCC spokesman Steve Sewell.
Evans said the party is considering similar television ads if it can raise the money.
