Skip to content
Project 2025
Search

Latest Stories

Top Stories
Jimmy Carter: Prophet of Doom for American Democracy

Jimmy Carter: Prophet of Doom for American Democracy

A fictional, fanciful sign depicts the results of voter suppression through the unfair, partisan manipulation of district lines (gerrymandering).

The worst congressional gerrymanders of the 2020s

Behind the “Lie of the Year,” some bitter truths

Behind the “Lie of the Year,” some bitter truths

Photo from the movie "Conclave"

Certainty is the enemy of unity and tolerance

Electioneering Communications

David Meyers
By David MeyersMay 03, 2019
David Meyers

David Meyers is the Executive Editor of The Fulcrum. Before launching The Fulcrum, David spent more than two decades at CQ Roll Call, a leading publisher of political news and information. During his time there, David served as managing editor of Roll Call (“the newspaper of Capitol Hill”) and as managing editor of member information and research, which included co-editing the definitive biographical directory of Congress, “Politics in America.” David went on to lead all of CQ Roll Call’s congressional research teams as vice president of research and content development before shifting to a revenue and strategy role as vice president of business operations for Roll Call, working with the advertising and editorial teams to develop new revenue models and expand the company’s events business. David lives in Fairfax, Va., with his wife, two daughters and rottweiler. A graduate of Tufts University, David is a past president of the Tufts University Alumni Association. He is also a past president of the Washington Press Club Foundation, which works to celebrate and advance the role of women and minorities in the media. David currently serves on the board of directors for Temple B’nai Shalom in Fairfax Station.

See More Writings by author

Political advertisements that mention a candidate and air within 30 days of a primary election or 60 days of a general election.

Definitions

Clearly identified candidate

A candidate is “clearly identified” if the candidate’s name, nickname, photograph or drawing appears, or the identity of the candidate is otherwise apparent through an unambiguous reference such as “the President,” “your Representative,” or “the incumbent.”

Public distribution

A communication is “publicly distributed” for the purposes of the rules governing electioneering communications when it is aired, broadcast, cablecast or otherwise disseminated through the facilities of a radio or television station, cable television system or a satellite system.

Targeted to the relevant electorate

A communication is “targeted to the relevant electorate” when it is receivable by 50,000 or more persons in the candidate’s district (for a House candidate) or state (for a Senate candidate).

In the case of presidential and vice presidential candidates, the communication is publicly distributed if it can be received by 50,000 or more people in a state where a primary election or caucus is being held within 30 days or anywhere in the United States 30 days prior to the nominating convention or 60 days prior to the general election.Read more about electioneering communications.

Latest news

Between a Rock and a Hard Place
Democracy

Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Read More

The Second Dimension of Our Current Politics

Donkey V Elephant

Getty Images//Stock Photo

The Second Dimension of Our Current Politics

Politics has felt weird for a while now. From Donald Trump himself to the noteworthy rise of populist sentiment that is affecting both parties, many informed people are left scratching their heads trying to understand what has come over the country. The American economy, historically the number one issue for voters, is the “envy of the world” according to a recent special report by The Economist; crime and illegal immigration are also down. Yet the 2024 presidential election was a decisive rebuke of the current administration, resulting in Trump leading the Republican party to its largest win in a presidential election since 1988.

Many postmortem conversations have focused on whether Kamala Harris should have run further to the right or the left and focused more attention during her abbreviated campaign on popular social or economic issues. This one-dimensional view of the right-left political spectrum, with traditional conservatism on one end and redistributive socialism on the other, comes up short in describing our current politics. It is only through recognizing the class dimension of political appeal, whereby some candidates tailor their message to the priorities of the educated, cosmopolitan class, and others tailor their message to the concerns of the working class that recent political contests can be better understood.

Keep ReadingShow less
Examining Why DEI Efforts Often Fall Short and How to Foster Effective Change

Diversity illustration concept shows different ethnicity and style of people walking on the street, the contrast of people showing individuality characteristics.

Getty Images//Stock Photo

Examining Why DEI Efforts Often Fall Short and How to Foster Effective Change

“You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.” - Buckminster Fuller

What if I told you that most organizations’ DEI initiatives were doomed from the start? That their failure could have been predicted and even avoided?

Keep ReadingShow less
Meta ditches fact-checkers: What it means for the rest of us

CEO of Meta, Mark Zuckerberg is seen during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing with representatives of social media companies at the Dirksen Senate Office Building on Wednesday January 31, 2024 in Washington, DC.

(Photo by Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

Meta ditches fact-checkers: What it means for the rest of us

This week, Meta announced that it would be ending relationships with its vast global network of fact-checking partners – organizations like Factcheck.org, Politifact, and the Associated Press that have been flagging falsehoods on the platform since 2017. In making the announcement, CEO Mark Zuckerberg claimed these partners were making “mistakes” and engaging in “censorship” and that it was time to “restore free expression” across Meta properties.

Platforms, journalists, civil society organizations and regular folks have long relied on fact-checkers to debunk the falsehoods polluting our information ecosystem. These journalists are trained to research claims and report the facts in accordance with standards set by the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) and its European counterpart, the European Fact-Checking Standards Network (EFCSN). All of Meta’s fact-checking partners were IFCN-approved; none took down content themselves.

Keep ReadingShow less
The Untold Costs of AI: The West Is Paying for the Future That Hasn’t Arrived

robot, technology, future, futuristic, business, tree, symbol

Getty Images//Stock Photo

The Untold Costs of AI: The West Is Paying for the Future That Hasn’t Arrived

Artificial intelligence (AI) has been heralded as a technological revolution that will transform our world. From curing diseases to automating dangerous jobs to discovering new inventions, the possibilities are tantalizing. We’re told that AI could bring unprecedented good—if only we continue to invest in its development and allow labs to seize precious, finite natural resources.

Yet, despite these grand promises, most Americans haven’t experienced any meaningful benefits from AI. It’s yet to meaningfully address most health issues, and for many, It’s not significantly improving our everyday lives, excluding drafting emails and making bad memes. In fact, AI usage is still largely confined to a narrow segment of the population: highly educated professionals in tech hubs and urban centers. An August 2024 survey by the Federal Reserve and Harvard Kennedy School found that while 39.4% of U.S. adults aged 18-64 reported using generative AI, adoption rates vary significantly. Workers with a bachelor's degree or higher are twice as likely to use AI at work compared to those without a college degree (40% vs. 20%), and usage is highest in computer/mathematical occupations (49.6%) and management roles (49.0%).

Keep ReadingShow less
© Copyright 2025