Chlorophyll

On Friday, the corporate media in Wisconsin announced that "We the People" [sic] will be holding two gubernatorial debates. This would be great... except for one thing.

Not all the candidates are invited.

On paper, "We the People" is a consortium of mass media: the Wisconsin State Journal, WISC-TV 3, Wisconsin Public Radio, Wisconsin Public Television, Wood Communications, and WisPolitics.com. They are, in fact, sponsored by several large corporations: American Family Insurance, American Transmission Company, Madison Gas & Electric and the Wisconsin Education Association Council.

But it's not as simple as the partners saying, "No, anti-corporate candidates aren't welcome." They wouldn't be so gauche. Rather, they informed the campaign that Nelson "does not meet the criteria." Here are the criteria:

• Does the candidate show at least 10% support in independent polls of the electorate? (In a race with many candidates, a lower threshold may be more appropriate)
• Has the candidate articulated views on principal issues affecting the electorate? (We the People/Wisconsin does not make judgments as to the “importance” of a candidate’s ideas, simply that they have expressed their views in a manner accessible to voters, such as written statements.)
• Is there an active campaign? Is there a campaign office, a staff, a phone number? In a major race, is there an office outside of the candidate’s home? District?
• Is there funding apart from the candidate’s own resources?
• Is there a discernible way of raising money?
• Is there campaign literature?
• Have other news organizations covered the candidate’s campaign?
• Is the candidate on the ballot? Were they during the last election?
• Is he/she viewed as a legitimate candidate in the eyes of academia and community leaders?
• Is the person a legally qualified candidate as specified by the FCC?

Here's the thing about "We the People" saying that Nelson does not meet the criteria: he does meet them.

He meets the last eight irrefutably. He's raised several thousand dollars, and continues to raise money. We've published our literature on the site, apart from printing it at local (union) print shop and handing it out on mutiple occasions. We've made the media, as the "Nelson in the news" link demonstrates. Academics and community leaders have publicly offered Nelson their support. Heck, there are even several songs written about Nelson! More important than all these put together, however, is the simple fact that Nelson is on the ballot. We gathered 120% of the required number of signatures, and the State Elections Board has formally and officially declared that Nelson is a candidate for governor.

There is one criterion that Nelson has not met. One criterion should not overrule the other nine, because "We the People" expressly says in their document that "No single criterion is paramount." Just the same, they are allowing it to do just that.

If you follow third-party politics, you've probably already guessed which hurdle Nelson didn't clear: getting 10% in a major poll. Well, that's an interesting story.

Only one poll has been done in the six weeks since Nelson announced. That poll was done by WISC-TV, which is a partner in "We the People." Nelson was not an option given to the respondents.

In fact, the campaign has the name of one person and expects to get two more who expressly told the pollster "I'm voting for Nelson Eisman." The pollster would not mark that down, because there was nowhere to mark it. Instead, that answer was recorded as "Undecided," even though the respondent was most certainly not undecided. So... if answers for Eisman were recorded as "undecided," and "undecided" polled at 14%, who's to say that Nelson isn't polling at 14%? (The campaign expects to publicize the names and statements from the people who tried to answer "Nelson Eisman" in press releases very soon.)

So, in summary: Nelson has to register 10% in a poll, but the polls won't register him. The criteria are specifically written so that we not only don't meet them, but by definition, can't meet them.

So, what can we do?

We can make it clear to everyone that these "debates" are not news. They are an editorial. The corporate media -- and more importantly, the sponsors of "We the People" -- are expressly telling you that the Republican and Democrat are the only candidates worthy of coverage. They will say they are bringing you the gubernatorial candidates, but that is only two-thirds true. They have selected which candidates you should hear, and what you should not. The media are not reporting on the campaign, they are participating in it.

If you would like to express yourself directly to the individuals who could revisit the decision to bar Nelson, here is their contact information:

President
Tom Bier, station manager, WISC-TV
7025 Raymond Rd. Madison, WI 53719
TEL: (608) 271-5171 FAX: (608) 271-0800
EMAIL: tbier@wisctv.com

Vice Presidents
Kathy Bissen, Interim Director of Production, Wisconsin Public Television
(608) 263-8496
bissen@wpt.org

Joy Cardin, Ideas Network director and talk show host, Wisconsin Public Radio
Cardin@wpr.org

Secretary
Tim Kelley, managing editor, Wisconsin State Journal
tkelley@madison.com
(608) 252 6115

Treasurer
Jim Wood, president, Wood Communications Group
700 Regent St.
Madison, WI 53715-1233
Phone: (608) 259-0757

Additional Directors

Neil Heinen, editorial director, WISC-TV and Madison Magazine
nheinen@wisctv.com

Jeff Mayers, president, WisPolitics.com
mayers@wispolitics.com
14 W. Mifflin St., Ste. LL-4
Madison, WI 53703
(608) 441-8418
Fax: (608) 441-8419

Thomas W. Still, co-founder
President, Wisconsin Technology Council
PO Box 71, 615 E. Washington Ave.
Madison, WI 53701-0071
(608) 442-7557
Fax: (608) 256-0333
tstill@wisctec.com

We The People/Wisconsin, Inc.
c/o Wisconsin State Journal
1901 Fish Hatchery Road
Madison, WI 53713

Deborah Jackson Still, project manager
dstill@wtpeople.com
608.232.2125