First amendment allows political ads to run — even if they have misleading statements – WRAL News
In court, "truth" is more subjective than you may think.
THIS CASE IS DEAD AS WELL. AN 18 YEAR-OLD. >> HI, EVERYBODY. HELLO THERE. I'M DAN HAGGERTY. THIS IS THE PART OF THE NEWSCAST. WE DISCUSS THE NEWS A LITTLE BIT NOW WORKING ON A FEW DIFFERENT THINGS. BUT I DO WANT TO CHECK IN CHECK IN WITH YOU QUICKLY TONIGHT IN JUST A COUPLE OF E-MAILS BECAUSE YOU'VE BEEN SENDING SO MANY OF THEM LIKE BETSY FROM CHAPEL HILL, WHO IS APPARENTLY A BIG FAN, BUT SHE'S A LITTLE CONFLICTED. SHE EMAILS DAN WRAL DOT COM AND SAID THIS. WE FIND OURSELVES TO BE JEOPARDY. LOYALISTS IN COMMERCIAL BREAKS. WE SWITCHED WRAL NEWS. IF YOU'RE RUNNING AN IN-DEPTH FEATURE, WE'VE CAUGHT A FEW, BUT WE DON'T KNOW WHEN YOUR SEGMENTS TYPICALLY RUN ARE THE WEEKLY OR ARE THEY ON A PARTICULAR DAY AND WE JUST HAVE NOT FOUND A PATTERN YET. THAT'S PROBABLY BECAUSE THERE ISN'T A PATTERN YET, BUT WE'RE WORKING ON THAT. I'M TRYING TO BUILD A LITTLE BIT OF A TEAM POSSIBLY AND HOPEFULLY SOON WILL BE DOING SOMETHING EVERY NIGHT. IN THE MEANTIME, THAT C. WHO CARES ABOUT JEOPARDY. HONESTLY, I KNOW IT'S ON THE SAME TIME AS ME. I KNOW IT RECENTLY PASSED 60 MINUTES TO BECOME THE MOST WATCHED NON-SPORTS SHOW ON TV. BUT LET'S SEE. DO YOU REALLY WANT TO FOLLOW THE PACK AND WATCH ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR THINGS IN AMERICAN CULTURE OR AND HEAR ME OUT HERE OR >> YOU WANT TO WATCH ME. >> A GUY SPENDS SOMETIMES 8 STRAIGHT MINUTES TALKING ABOUT THINGS LIKE BRIAN AND THE OLD SUPREME COURT OPINIONS TO A COOLER THAT WAY. IN FACT, YOU CAN FIND EVERYTHING I TALK ABOUT ON WRAL'S NEW YOUTUBE CHANNEL HAVE AN ENTIRE PLAYLIST CALLED IN DEPTH WITH DAN HAGGERTY WERE STILL KIND OF FINE TUNING THE VISUALS. IF YOU LOOK AT A COUPLE OF THE THUMBNAILS LIKE THIS ONE DOESN'T EXACTLY SAY LOOK AT ME, I'M GOING TO SAY SOMETHING SMART, BUT WE'RE WORKING ON IT. OKAY. SO PLEASE STICK WITH US. YOU'LL FIND ALL THE TOPICS THAT YOU EMAIL ME ABOUT THAT WE DISCUSS HERE DURING THIS SEGMENT LIKE MY RECENT DISCUSSION WITH YOU ABOUT POLITICAL ADS, YOU MAY REMEMBER THAT WE TALKED TO A LAWYER WHO WORKS WITH CAMPAIGNS TO CHECK THEIR ADS BEFORE THEY AIR. IT CONFIRMED TO US SOMETHING THAT WAS KIND OF HARD TO BELIEVE FOR A LOT OF PEOPLE THAT EFFECTIVELY THESE CANDIDATES CAN LIE IN THESE ACTS BECAUSE OF THE FIRST AMENDMENT. AND IN THAT SEGMENT, I DISCUSSED THE CONCERNS THAT A VIEWER NAMED CAROL SHARED WITH ME RECENTLY. CARROLL SAID DAN. I WONDER ABOUT THE ETHICS OF THE STATIONS TO RUN ADS. IF THE AD IS DECLARED FALSE, BY FACT, CHECKED, WHY IS THE AD NOT PULLED THE MONEY? IS THE MONEY VALUED ABOVE THE TRUTH. I'M DISTURBED BY AS NOT BEING PULLED THE NEGATIVE. CHERI BEASLEY AD IS ONE THAT STICKS OUT. AND I KNOW THAT IT FEELS KIND OF STRANGE, BUT THE TRUTH ISN'T NECESSARILY PART OF THAT TRANSACTION. AND IN COURT, TRUTH IS MORE SUBJECTIVE THAN YOU MAY THINK. THAT'S WHY WE HAVE PEOPLE LIKE PAUL SPAY AND POLITIFACT TO EXPLAIN THE FREE SPEECH THAT YOU HEAR DURING OUR COMMERCIAL BREAK. SOMETIMES PAUL CARROLL MENTION CHERI BEASLEY AND ADD THAT RUNS ON OUR AIR MAKING SOME CLAIMS ABOUT HER RULINGS AND A DEATH SENTENCE CASE AND AN ASSAULT ON A MINOR. >> THE FORMER SUPREME COURT JUSTICE CHERI BEASLEY GO EASY ON DEFENDANTS IN A PAIR OF SENSITIVE CASES. THAT'S WHAT THE NATIONAL REPUBLICAN SENATORIAL COMMITTEE SUGGEST ITS NEW ATTACK AD. TAKE A LOOK. >> THE WORST THING COMES. THE STATION AND CHIEF JUSTICE SHERRY BEASLEY FAILED TO PROTECT THEM. THE MURDERER SHOW DOUBLING THE FACE BC. THEY CAME TO HIS SON'S MEN CONVICTED OF SEXUALLY ASSAULTING A 7 YEAR-OLD GIRL. SHE THREW OUT THE INDICTMENT. >> BEASLEY IS A DEMOCRATIC CANDIDATE IN NORTH CAROLINA'S U.S. SENATE RACE WILL TAKE ON REPUBLICAN TED BUDD IN NOVEMBER. THE AD MAKES 2 CLAIMS ABOUT HER THAT SHE VACATED THE DEATH SENTENCE FOR SOMEONE WHO SHOT A TEENAGER AND THAT SHE THREW OUT THE INDICTMENT OF A MAN CONVICTED OF ASSAULTING A YOUNG GIRL. THE AD IS SOMEWHAT ACCURATE. BUT LET'S BE CLEAR ABOUT SOMETHING NEITHER OF THESE CASES WAS ABOUT THE DEFENDANT'S ACTIONS AND THE DEATH SENTENCE CASE. A MAN HAD BEEN CONVICTED OF MURDERING A 17 YEAR-OLD. HE WAS INITIALLY GIVEN THE DEATH PENALTY. BUT THEN YOU SOMETHING CALLED THE RACIAL JUSTICE ACT TO GET HIS SENTENCE REDUCED TO LIFE IN PRISON. STATE LAWMAKERS THEN REPEAL THE RACIAL JUSTICE ACT AND THE STATE SUPREME COURT WAS ASKED SHOULD THE MEN BE SENT BACK TO DEATH ROW BEASLEY IN THE COURT RULED NO, THAT WOULD BE DOUBLE JEOPARDY. SO HE'LL SERVE LIFE IN PRISON. AS FOR THE CASE WITH THE YOUNG GIRL, THE MAN WHO HAD BEEN CONVICTED ARGUED TO HAVE HIS CASE THROWN OUT BECAUSE PROSECUTORS DIDN'T COMPLY WITH STATE LAW AS IT APPLIES TO IDENTIFYING HIS ACCUSER. THE INDICTMENT REFERRED ONLY TO THE GIRL AS VICTIM ONE. THE COURT RULED 42 THAT THE INDICTMENT DID NOT DISTINGUISH THE DEFENDANT ACCUSER FROM OTHER VICTIMS. BEASLEY IN THE 3 OTHER CITED THIS STATE LAW WHICH SAYS INDICTMENTS MUST HAVE SOME FORM OF IDENTIFYING INFORMATION FOR THE VICTIM. SO ALTOGETHER, THAT AD HAD SOME ACCURATE INFORMATION, BUT IT LEAVES OUT A LOT OF IMPORTANT CONTEXT AND THAT'S WHY THE TREATIES OR A GET AFTER IT. >> TO READ MORE ABOUT THOSE CASES, GO TO WRAL DOT COM. THANKS TO PAUL TRYING TO HELP US TO UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU SEE IN THESE ADS AND THEY'RE GOING TO BE PLENTY MORE AS WE APPROACH THE NOVEMBER ELECTION. BUT THERE'S A LOT MORE IN GENERAL TO TALK ABOUT. SO PLEASE E-MAIL ME AT DAN. >> AT WRAL DOT COM, NOT TRY TO RESPOND TO EVERY SINGLE E-MAIL. PLEASE BE PATIENT. I GET A TON OF THEM. SO IF YOU HAVEN'T GOTTEN A RESPONSE YET, TRUST ME. I'M WORKING ON IT. IF YOU HAVE SOMETHING ELSE TO SAY BE PERSISTENT. LIKE KARL WHO SAID, I ENJOY YOUR PROVOKING DISCUSSIONS OF CONTROVERSIAL QUESTIONS, BUT I HAVE NOT SEEN ONE PRESSING ISSUE TREATED. WHAT HAPPENED WITH KAT CAMPBELL IS VISIT TO ICELAND. WE WERE SUPPOSED TO GET DAILY REPORTS WITH PICTURES OF WATERFALLS AND VOLCANOES, ET CETERA. BUT I SAW ONLY ONE ON THE FIRST DAY OF ARRIVAL WITH A HUGE CHURCH. THEN SUDDENLY SHE WAS BACK ON THE AIR AS IF NOTHING HAD HAPPENED. NO WORD MENTION OF ICELAND, WRAL TRYING TO COVER SOMETHING UP. YES. IS A SECRET AGENT.
Read this article:
First amendment allows political ads to run -- even if they have misleading statements - WRAL News
- Trump uses assassination attempt to justify his assault on first amendment rights to free speech - The Conversation - May 3rd, 2026 [May 3rd, 2026]
- The GUARD Act Undermines the First Amendment and Parental Choice - R Street Institute - May 3rd, 2026 [May 3rd, 2026]
- Art by Telephone, Art by Algorithm: Expression, AI, and the First Amendment - - Center for Democracy and Technology - May 3rd, 2026 [May 3rd, 2026]
- The first amendment shall prevail: Plaintiff in 2023 discrimination case speaks after judge orders St. George to pay $350K - ABC4 Utah - May 3rd, 2026 [May 3rd, 2026]
- RANDY EVANS: Reflecting on mentors, opportunity and the First Amendment - Indianola Independent Advocate - May 3rd, 2026 [May 3rd, 2026]
- Utah City Ordered to Pay $350k to Drag Performers After Losing First Amendment Fight - EDGE Media Network - May 3rd, 2026 [May 3rd, 2026]
- The Mouse vs. The White House: Disney Lawyers Up for First Amendment War Over ABCs License - Inside the Magic - May 3rd, 2026 [May 3rd, 2026]
- Analysis: What Disney is thinking as it faces a First Amendment fight with Trump - CNN - April 29th, 2026 [April 29th, 2026]
- First Amendment advocates blast the FCC's early review of ABC broadcast licenses - NBC News - April 29th, 2026 [April 29th, 2026]
- Kimmel, the First Amendment and a brewing battle with the FCC - USA Today - April 29th, 2026 [April 29th, 2026]
- Former Spokane mayor Woodward wants $10 million from the city, alleges First Amendment violations - KXLY.com - April 29th, 2026 [April 29th, 2026]
- The Taricani Visiting Journalist Series on First Amendment Rights Harrington School of Communication and Media - The University of Rhode Island - April 29th, 2026 [April 29th, 2026]
- In rare interviews, Bush hails the First Amendment and Obama says America doesn't have 'kings' - NBC News - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- CBS Hosting Dinner Praising Trump And His Love Of The First Amendment - Techdirt. - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- BREAKING: Street preacher threatens to sue SIUE on grounds of First Amendment rights violation - alestlelive.com - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- First Amendment to Arkansas: You Cannot Sentence Speech on the Internet to Death by a Thousand Cuts in NetChoice Court Victory - NetChoice - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- The GUARD Act dis-GUARDs the First Amendment and competition - Competitive Enterprise Institute - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- Supreme Court Denies Hearing in First Amendment Cases Related to Occupational Speech - The Institute for Justice - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- Code is functional free speech under the First Amendment: Coin Center - TradingView - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- Texas public schools can now have Ten Commandments displays, Appeals Court ruled, but Supreme Court can still save this First Amendment disaster -... - April 23rd, 2026 [April 23rd, 2026]
- Trump admin violated First Amendment by forcing Facebook and Apple to remove ICE-trackers - Law and Crime News - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- Judge sides with creators of banned ICE trackers who allege DHS and DOJ violated their First Amendment rights - Engadget - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- How Originalism Broke the First Amendment - Balls and Strikes - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- Trump says CNN may have committed a crime. The First Amendment says otherwise - Poynter - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- Jon Prosser's last-ditch effort against Apple's lawsuit is the First Amendment - AppleInsider - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- California Attorney Who Tried To Help Overturn 2020 Election Loses Law License - First Amendment Watch - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- ANOTHER VIEWPOINT: First amendment lynchpin of American experiment - The Facts - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- White House Correspondents Dilemma: Toasting the First Amendment as Trump Tramples Over It | Analysis - TheWrap - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- Mitali Bags speech on The Constitution (One Hundred and Thirty-First Amendment) Bill, 2026 and The Delimitation Bill, 2026 - All India Trinamool... - April 19th, 2026 [April 19th, 2026]
- Occupational licensing has a First Amendment problem - The Hill - April 10th, 2026 [April 10th, 2026]
- Paterno: Dangerous Times for the First Right of the First Amendment - StateCollege.com - April 10th, 2026 [April 10th, 2026]
- When ICE enforcement and the First Amendment collide - News From The States - April 10th, 2026 [April 10th, 2026]
- Briefing Room: Advice on dealing with First Amendment auditors - Seal Beach News - April 10th, 2026 [April 10th, 2026]
- On Books, Book Reviews, and Bezos - First Amendment Watch - April 10th, 2026 [April 10th, 2026]
- Escambia County sheriff responds after heated argument between First Amendment auditor and deputy: did not reflect our core values - Yahoo - April 10th, 2026 [April 10th, 2026]
- Diddy Appeal: Lawyers Seek Release, Argue Freak-Offs Are Protected By First Amendment - HOT 97 - April 10th, 2026 [April 10th, 2026]
- Future of First Amendment: FIU to host 'Free Speech: A Florida Dialogue' with Georgetown University - WLRN - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Hollywood Stars Join Together to Defend the First Amendment - The Progressive - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Federal judge rules Trump violated First Amendment by ordering defunding of NPR and PBS - KUOW - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Lemon Pound Cake and the First Amendment - jdsupra.com - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Citing First Amendment, federal judge blocks Trump order to end funding for NPR and PBS - nbcmiami.com - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Getting to Know You: Imprisoned for Exercising her First Amendment Rights She Now Speaks Truth to Power - morningsentinel.com - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Federal judge rules Trump's public media order violated First Amendment. Here's what that means for KOSU - KOSU - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Aspen Public Radio and co-plaintiffs win federal case against Trump Administration, proclaiming a win for the First Amendment - KHOL 89.1 FM - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Federal judge cites First Amendment in blocking Trump order to end funding to NPR and PBS - Colorado Public Radio - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Opinion | The Supreme Court repels an egregious assault on the First Amendment - washingtonpost.com - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- In Counseling Case, the Supreme Court Sides with the First Amendment - nationalreview.com - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- REACTION: Supreme Court Affirms Therapy as SpeechA Major First Amendment Victory - Minding The Campus - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- BIZARRE: The First Amendment should be banned - northernstar.info - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- EDITORIAL: A victory for the First Amendment at the high court - Las Vegas Review-Journal - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- TV station megamerger is a threat to First Amendment freedoms (Editorial) - Daily Camera - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Monroe County woman sues sheriff, claiming arrest over Facebook post violated First Amendment rights - WBIR - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Supreme Court overturns ban on so-called 'conversion therapy' on First Amendment grounds - Fox News - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- Donald Trump Violated First Amendment With This Action, Says US Judge - Yahoo - April 5th, 2026 [April 5th, 2026]
- No First Amendment for some immigrant journalists or sources, govt says - Freedom of the Press Foundation - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Protesting in Tennessee, what are your First Amendment rights? - The Tennessean - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- First Amendment lawsuit seeks to end Nashuas policy of requiring name and address during public comment - New Hampshire Public Radio - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- First Amendment Balancing, or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Become a Breyerian - | Knight First Amendment Institute - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Does a Public Actor Have the Right to Anonymity? Animal Research and Wider First Amendment Implications - Harvard Law School - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Halo zone around police, ICE nears final passage as Dems voice First Amendment concerns - News From The States - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Bravo to students who use the First Amendment - The Campanile - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Supreme Court revives First Amendment lawsuit from street preacher who called concertgoers whores, Jezebels and sissies - CNN - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- The next AI fight: Do the chatbots have First Amendment rights? - qz.com - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Judge strikes down restrictive Pentagon press policy, finding it violates First Amendment - CBS News - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Gianforte Administration Reverses Permit Guidelines, Allows Weekend Events at the State Capitol - First Amendment Watch - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- A call for US companies to follow the First Amendment: Ross Kerber - TradingView - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Students sue University of Alabama over suspension of campus magazines, claim First Amendment breach - rocketcitynow.com - March 26th, 2026 [March 26th, 2026]
- Students raise concerns over Kansas Senate bill that limits First Amendment right to protest - Kansas Reflector - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- Jane Fonda's Committee For The First Amendment On Brendan Carr Threats - Deadline - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- This is the issue with doing counterterrorism in a 'First Amendment society': Paul Mauro - Fox News - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- A Media-Rating Company Says a Trump Agency Is Threatening Its Livelihood - First Amendment Watch - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- Feds Move To Dismiss Charges Against Army Veteran Who Burned American Flag Near White House - First Amendment Watch - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- Jane Fonda's Committee for the First Amendment issued a response to FCC Chair Brendan Carr's threats against broadcasters' coverage of Iran. Read more... - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- On MSNOW, Angelo Carusone discusses grave First Amendment consequences of the Trump administration trying to control major media organizations - Media... - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- Diddy Appeals Conviction Claiming Freak-Offs Protected by First Amendment - That Grape Juice.net - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- Raja Ramaswamy Column: We should protect the First Amendment like we do the Second - reporter.net - March 17th, 2026 [March 17th, 2026]
- The Recap: Trump squashes First Amendment, and another state could flip blue - Daily Kos - March 15th, 2026 [March 15th, 2026]
- In Fox News Op-Ed, Mahmoud Khalil Urges Americans To Defend The First Amendment - Yahoo - March 15th, 2026 [March 15th, 2026]
- Sheriff Grady Judd says troll crossed lines of First Amendment in threats made to Kaitlin Bennett - Yahoo - March 15th, 2026 [March 15th, 2026]
- The Fate of the First Amendment - Civil Discourse with Joyce Vance - March 15th, 2026 [March 15th, 2026]