FEC Commissioner Warns of Creeping Threat of Media Regulation at FEC

Publishers and filmmakers should be wary of Democrats at the Federal Election Commission trying to squeeze them out of an exemption created for the press, according to FEC Republican Commissioner Lee Goodman. Goodman used a five-page statement to scold Democrats on the commission for trying to continue an investigation into a company that created and distributed a conspiracy theory film ahead of the 2012 election that claimed that President Barack Obama's real father was Franklin Marshall Davis, described as "an American Communist." The FEC ultimately voted in February to close the case without taking any action — an increasingly common occurrence with the 3-3 deadlock at the commission that is divided between the two parties.

Though no action was taken, Goodman said the implication of the Democrats' position could have been much broader than a fringe film. "Imagine the specter of a government investigation and punishment of a filmmaker for showing a political film in over 500 theaters nationally," Goodman wrote. A complaint filed in 2014 alleged that Highway 61 Entertainment owner Joel Gilbert should have reported the cost of distributing the film and included a disclaimer along with it. The film "Dreams from my Real Father: The Story of Reds and Deception" is described as a play on President Obama's actual autobiography with a narrator impersonating the president. The FEC requires many organizations to report the donations they receive and any expenses used when attempting to sway federal elections. However, there is a broad press exemption for news or commentary released through newspapers, magazines and other media as long as they are not owned by a political committee or a candidate.