Transparency on the campaign trail.

• Position: OPEN RECORDS - Brief article

Want to know how much political candidates pay to advertise on your local television stations? Now you can find out online thanks to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), which recently voted to require local television stations to put public files, including political advertising records, on their websites.

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Broadcasters have been required to keep this kind of information for public inspection since 1938, but it has not been accessed a great deal by the public. Some expect this will change now that it will be available more easily online.

Some organizations fought the stating that it would be a burden on local stations' resources. The National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) opposed the rules for strategic reasons: "By forcing broadcasters to be the only medium to disclose on the...