FEC dismisses complaint on MoveOn’s “Betray Us” ad

The Federal Election Commission (FEC) announced Thursday that it has ruled The New York Times did not provide MoveOn.org with a special rate for its 2007 full-page ad critical of Gen. David Petraeus.

The ad, which ran in 2007 and called Petraeus “General Betray Us,” caused a lot of controversy when it first ran, and Democrats were forced to separate themselves from the liberal group.

Conservative commentators also alleged that MoveOn was given a special rate for the ad – evidence of the New York Times’s supposed liberal bias – after a reporter was quoted a higher price for a full-page ad than MoveOn said it paid.

The American Conservative Union (ACU) filed a complaint with the FEC that said this amounted to a corporate contribution.

The FEC said there was no reason to believe that MoveOn was afforded a special rate and that, in fact, it appeared it was given a “usual and normal rate.”

Update: A previous version of this post mistakenly stated that the FEC ruled on the case Thursday. The FEC was merely announcing a ruling that had already been made.

Tags Advertisements Company Product David Petraeus Entertainment Internet activism MoveOn.org MoveOn.org ad controversy Opposition to the Iraq War Person Career Political activism Politics United States

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