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Subscribe to RSSOutside groups are spending hundreds of millions of dollars on campaign advertisements to influence the coming elections—money that has long been hard to track.
This summer, the Federal Communications Commission ordered TV stations to pull back the curtain a bit, requiring them to publish online detailed records of political ad buys. Before, these records were only available by visiting stations in person, an issue ProPublica spotlighted in our Free The Files coverage. So far the new rule only covers the top 50 markets, and it's impossible to search these files by candidate or political group—meaning it’s impossible to get a full picture of the spending.
We want to change that. That’s where you come in.
Use the Free the Files widget at right to help detail campaign ad filings in 33 swing markets. To participate, use the drop-down menu to pick a market, click on the “Give me a file!” bar, create a log-in or sign in via Facebook, then pick from a list of recent ad contracts. Fill in the blanks on the form, then click “Submit file,” and you’re done.
Every day, we’ll be pulling fresh files from the FCC website, and asking for your help extracting key data points that will help uncover outside spending in the final days of the campaign.
Every file you help free will be added to our page, so we’ll all be able to get a better picture of the outside groups’ spending.
Read ProPublica’s reporting on “dark money” campaign ad spending
What do we expect to find in the FCC filings? A range of information – from identifying which outside groups are buying ads and where, to finding new groups that enter the fray late in the game, to details on who is behind opaque nonprofits that are playing a larger role in the election. That’s how ProPublica’s Justin Elliott found the players behind the Government Integrity Fund, a little-known nonprofit that has spent big money to unseat Sen. Sherrod Brown in Ohio.
Get started
We have less than three weeks to go before the election. Log in now to help us start freeing the files!
You can keep track of our progress by joining our Facebook group – tell us what you’ve learned from the documents, get updates from our reporters, or ask questions about the documents.
You can also follow #FreetheFiles on Twitter.
ProPublica is an independent, nonprofit newsroom that produces investigative journalism in the public interest.
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INSTALLING PRESIDENT ROMNEY ....…
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Obama was just reported as telling a crowd this morning that he is "finally getting the hang of this debatin' thing." (He had to sound Southern for the crowd!) Obviously, he is a slow learner. Too bad he could not have done better at the first debate, because that is the one that mattered....and that is the one we will all remember.
How do your posts relate to to topic?
Indeed, Jody this is the most off topic thing I have ever seen.
BTW: Why is there no Seattle Market?
All of the information is readily available when it is required to be.
If you want the information sooner,
bribelobby Congress to change the law.CROWLEY and PRESIDENT is right? TWO WEEKS after the death of the ambassador, president blame the videographer for the cause of the attack = he was arrested. But in the debate, he claim it was terrorist after the attack???? Sorry, all my Asian family and friends are JUMPING SHIPPING.. FOOL us once is enough.. FOOL us twice in the debate is a knife to my country WE LOVE.
Do we really need to see the files? Superpacs and their super rich backers own the system. Come on. These people are not giving, they are buying. Who thinks these rich politicians want those measly 100.00 checks from the middle class voters. Lets face the fact that superpacs control who gets to run for office. Without their backing these politicians couldnt get their message out.
Except, we both know thats B.S. The Superpacs do not get out messages, they simply spam the airways with "Why should we trust this guy *Insert Name Here* He eats babies." Seriously its all negative, most of the advertising that leads to serious debate comes from the candidates themselves, which receive plenty of money from the middle class. However, they still tend to get outspent by the superpacs, which is a shame. Money should not equal free speech, because the rich should NOT by any circumstance have more "speech" than the rest of us.
campain reform is needed. public financing and NO private donations. All canidates get the same money to spend .We will never clean this up until we get the money out of the election process. Small doners ( the majority ) have no chance to compete against large doners and companies that try to BUY an election.
So sad there isn't enough brass for this to happen.
Don't have hundreds of millions of dollars, but we do have other weapons available should they try to bring harm to us.
it's voters that buy into this drivel that perpetuates these ads. one side lies, the other side lies. pick a candidate that best exemplifies your ideals, and vote accordingly. The difference in the parties is wide enough that all the advertising in the world shouldn't change our minds. we should be happy to see all the money pumped into the local economies