
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, September 11, 1993                   TAG: 9309110206
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: DALE EISMAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                LENGTH: Medium

NRA HOLDING BACK ON FULL-SCALE TV ATTACK ON TERRY

The National Rifle Association may have targeted Democratic gubernatorial nominee Mary Sue Terry, but so far the powerful lobby is conserving its ammunition.

Spot-checks Friday with television stations across the state suggested that the NRA has bought relatively little air time for a commercial that Terry claims is the beginning of what will be a massive campaign against her.

The 60-second ad does not mention Terry by name, but it ridicules politicians who support waiting periods for handgun purchases. Terry, a former state attorney general, has made that proposal a centerpiece of her campaign.

"I think Mary Sue Terry is being a bit overly sensitive," said Jim Baker, the NRA's chief lobbyist. The ad has been on the air in Virginia and across the nation at various times since April and is designed to solicit new members, he said.

The commercial's tag line exhorts viewers to "Join the NRA" and gives them a toll-free telephone number to call to sign up.

In Virginia, the ad apparently has run most often on stations in the western half of the state, where gun control is considered to have the least support.

Pete Watkins, who handles political ads for Roanoke station WSLS, said the NRA has made a fairly substantial purchase of air time. He said that's not surprising in Roanoke, "a pickups and foxtails market" where hunting is very popular.

The NRA ads are running in prime time, however, and so appear less often than those promoting Terry, who is spending $5,000 to $7,000 weekly and whose buying to date has been concentrated around less expensive news and talk shows. Republican George Allen, lagging well behind Terry in fund raising, has not advertised on TV in several weeks but apparently will begin a new round of commercials next week.

The NRA makes no secret of its support for Allen, lobbyist Baker said, and it may give him cash or other assistance. Through a political action committee, the NRA already has provided around $45,000 to the Allen camp, according to campaign finance reports.

The NRA commonly helps candidates not by direct contributions but through ads or mass mailings. A year ago, for example, the gun lobby spent $201,000 trying to unseat Rep. Mike Synar, D-Okla.

by CNB