THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Wednesday, October 23, 1996 TAG: 9610230513
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B7 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: LANDMARK NEWS SERVICE
DATELINE: ROANOKE LENGTH: 41 lines
Almost as long as Madison Avenue has been around, sex has been used to sell products - with one notable exception.
In political ads, candidates won't touch the subject with a 10-foot voting lever.
Until now.
The main character in 6th District Libertarian congressional candidate Jay Rutledge's first radio spot is ``Candy,'' who sounds like a veteran of the phone sex racket.
Her risque ``oohs'' and ``mmms'' made their way onto airwaves Tuesday on WFIR-AM in a Rutledge commercial that satirizes phone sex and Republican and Democratic campaign promises.
At least one listener was a bit taken aback. ``It got really gross for daytime radio,'' said Martha Borthen of Roanoke.
Here's part of the script:
Woman's voice: ``Hi, 1-900 POLITICS. I'm Candy. I like to play in your favorite Democratic and Republican positions. And what is your fantasy today?
Male caller (whispering): ``I want the Democratic middle-class tax cut.''
Woman: ``Do you want the cut waste, fraud and abuse fantasy with it?'' Man: ``Yeah!''
Woman: ``Mmmm. Me, too! I feel your pain. I care, ooh, can you feel it, too?'' Man (voice getting hoarse): ``I want the Republican tax cut, too!''
Woman: ``It's gonna be real good. I promise. Mmmmm, it's big!
(Man's wife walks into room and he hangs up the phone.) Wife: ``Honey, not again. Who would it be this time, the Democrats or Republicans? You can't go on like this. You're in debt up to your ears. The Libertarians have the solution for your problem.''
Terrilynn Hardman, sales manager for WFIR, said Tuesday the station hadn't received any complaints so far. Even if complaints come in, there's little WFIR can do about it, Hardman said. FCC regulations bar the station from censoring political advertising.
KEYWORDS: POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT by CNB