Council candidates agree on air-time deal

YAKIMA, Wash. — Yakima City Council candidate Dave Ettl will resume his regular role as morning talk radio host on Monday.

Ettl's employer, Gap West Broadcasting, confirmed deals Friday with his two opponents, incumbent Councilwoman Sonia Rodriguez and Yakima homemaker Sharon Madson.

Madson and Rodriguez will waive their Federal Communications Commission-regulated equal-time rights in exchange for advertising spots and other considerations from Gap West, which owns Ettl's station, KIT 1280-AM. The 30- and 60-second ads will air on other Gap West stations; the company owns six Yakima-area stations.

"I'm just extremely happy that the three candidates came to the table and worked through these issues," said David Roederer, general manager of Gap West.

Typically when candidates run against on-air broadcasters, they reach such agreements or else the company pulls the broadcaster off the air, said Mark Berlin, an attorney in the Federal Communications Commission's political office in Washington, D.C. Both sides often recognize that giving opponents equal air time is impractical if not impossible, he said.

"Hardly anybody would be able to talk for an hour and 15 minutes," Berlin said. "So they make some kind of deal for a lesser amount of time that would be more advantageous to both sides."

Rodriguez couldn't immediately be reached Friday for comment. Madson responded to a message seeking comment with an e-mail acknowledging her agreement and directing questions to Roederer.

Roederer, who declined to provide copies of the agreements, said they are essentially the same for both of Ettl's opponents, except that Madson and Rodriguez wanted to have messages run on different stations.

Ettl said he's happy to put the matter behind him and return to his normal morning news-talk slot.

"It's a win-win," he said.

Ettl, Rodriguez and Madson were all on KIT on Friday morning, even before the deals were announced, as part of a fundraiser for the Children's Miracle Network. Madson and Rodriguez waived any equal time considerations for Friday so Ettl could participate without worrying whether he was on for longer than they were during the fundraiser.

* Pat Muir can be reached at 509-577-7693 or pmuir@yakimaherald.com.