FEC dismisses complaint against Kos Media, says blogs enjoy press exemption

Today is a great day for the netroots community with the Federal Election Commission's dismissal of a complaint against Daily Kos and Kos Media, filed by one John Bambenek, who had claimed that the site was in violation of FEC rules unless it registered as a political committee. The FEC has tossed the complaint, reaffirming that political blogs enjoy the press exemption:

Kos Media qualifies as a media entity in its function of operating DailyKos. DailyKos is available to the general public and is the online equivalent of a newspaper, magazine, or other periodical publication as described in the Act and Commission regulations.

Additionally, DailyKos is precisely the type of online media presence the Commission contemplated when revising the media exemption provided in 11 C.F.R. §§ 100.73 and 100.132. An examination of DailyKos and other supporting materials demonstrates that the site’s primary function is to provide news and commentary to millions of viewers through its "blog" entries providing news stories with links to "breaking news," original political commentary, and calls to action.

Like traditional media outlets such as newspapers and magazines, DailyKos has a publisher, Moulitsas, who appears to retain editorial control over the content of the site, and a list of contributing editors, who along with Moulitsas appear to be "front page posters" and draft stories.

Further, registered users of DailyKos may post responsive comments, which are similar to letters to the editors in traditional media outlets.

In addition, Kos Media’s creation and distribution of the DailyKos falls within the scope of the exemption. First, the complaint does not allege, nor does publicly available information indicate, that Kos Media is owned or controlled by a political party, committee, or candidate.

Second, by creating and distributing the DailyKos, containing news stones with links to "breaking news," original political commentary and calls to actions akin to editorials, Kos Media is acting within its legitimate press function that qualifies it as a press entity.

As such, Kos Media’s creation and distribution of the DailyKos falls within Kos Media’s legitimate press function. Moreover, Kos Media's operation of DailyKos is the type of activity contemplated by the Commission during its rulemaking regarding the media exemption....

While the complaint asserts that DailyKos advocates for the election of Democrats to federal office, the Commission has repeatedly stated that an entity that would otherwise qualify for the media exemption does not lose its eligibility because it features news or commentary lacking objectivity or expressly advocates in its editorials the election or defeat of a federal candidate.

We applaud today's action by the FEC and we urge Washington State's equivalent, the Public Disclosure Commission, to follow its example. (The PDC is considering possible rules for political blogs). Individuals or entities that own political blogs should not be forced to register committees or follow any burdensome regulations.