Many agencies run PSAs that provide helpful public service with safety messages or programs that are available to help people with needs. But you don't pay for PSAs. They have always been part of the public interest. That certainly applies to over-the-air media, but it ought to apply equally to ALL media channels.

It sounds like we need comprehensive new laws that define the responsibility of media companies of all types to provide public service as a condition of their right to operate in the public space. And that ought to have very strong guidelines of how PSAs can be presented to be a legitimate public service and not gaslighting.

And not a single taxpayer dollar for agencies or individuals to promote themselves. After all, there are plenty of free opportunities for agencies to make their case on the Press the Meat programs.

I am surprised by, and appreciate, Kennedy's point of view on this. But he didn't take it nearly far enough.

The government contracts (pays) companies to create those PSAs and that includes putting out RFPs for "Voice Actors" etc.

But generally speaking, agencies don't pay for the PSA placements.

The taxpayers pay for the creation of the PSAs and stations are welcomed to use them (and log their use per the FCC). However many broadcasters would prefer to use that time for paid advertisers but will use the PSAs for "filler" when there is no other spot scheduled.

I simply said that PSAs are normally aired for free. And that PUBLIC SERVICE messages are the only kind of advertising any government agency should be doing. Anything beyond that steps into the world of fascism and authoritarianism.

(I worked for 4 years at my college radio station and actually used to generate/record PSAs on carts for the station and when I was on the air, would air them and had to log them in a logbook).

My only issue was your one sentence in your original post -

But that is a slippery slope. If HHS is going out with a message to get your flu shot, I don't mind that involving a professional agency that can help the PSA be effective.

Same for seat belts, smoking, drug abuse, food safety,, wild fires and a wide swath of public service messages.

That is fundamentally different from Noem promoting herself or Trump pushing her to put out an ad saying "Biden let murderers and rapists in willy nilly, but I alone have closed the borders." If we ever get past Trump, we need a new era of laws that set some boundaries, and these laws need to apply to all the major media, not just the 3 networks that were important 60 years ago.

That is why she was read the riot act from of all people, Sen. John Kennedy (R) of LA. And he can be a nasty ass too.

She WASTED almost $300 million of taxpayer money on spreading BULLSHIT.

I'm gonna miss her smirky smile and Barbie cosplay wardrobe when she's finally gone.