Ross still on the air while mulling House bid

By Warren Cornwall
Seattle Times Eastside bureau

Dave Ross

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Ross missed his regular 9 a.m. to noon show on KIRO-AM (710) yesterday, after news surfaced that state Democratic Party Chairman Paul Berendt approached Ross about making a bid for U.S. Rep Jennifer Dunn's seat. But KIRO said it was because of a routine doctor's appointment, not because of the news.

Meanwhile, the radio station had a guest host ask listeners to weigh in on whether Ross should run, and ran an online survey on its Web site.

"I think a lot of people are going to want to hear what he has to say when he's back tomorrow," said Kris Olinger, the station's program director. "So there is definitely that benefit. The downside for us would be if he actually decides to run and we lose him as a talk-show host," she said.

Ross, who expresses skepticism about his chances in such a race but hasn't ruled out a run, said yesterday he would continue in his job.

Media to politics Puget Sound has a tradition of news-media personalities launching successful — and sometimes unsuccessful — careers in politics. Here are some of the best known: Charles Royer: Formerly KING-TV news commentator, was elected Seattle mayor in 1977 and served three four-year terms. Norm Rice: KIXY radio reporter, later KOMO writer/editor, became Seattle mayor, succeeding Royer and serving two terms. Al Swift: a former news and public-affairs director at KVOS in Bellingham, was elected to Congress in 1978 and served for 16 years. Mike James: longtime KING-TV reporter and anchor, was defeated in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate in 1994. John Carlson: KVI-AM talk-show host, ran unsuccessfully for governor against Gary Locke in 2000. Jim Compton: former NBC correspondent and host of the "KING-TV Compton Report," elected to Seattle City Council in 1999. Jean Godden: longtime Seattle Times and Post-Intelligencer columnist, elected to City Council in 2003. Research by Times staff researcher Gene Balk

"If I get into the race, I'll talk with Kris about it," he said.

Generally, media personalities leave their jobs when they become candidates.

John Carlson, a radio talk-show host on KVI-AM (570), quit to embark on a failed campaign for governor in 2000. Former Seattle Times columnist Jean Godden resigned from her job the day she entered the race for Seattle City Council last year. Three-term Seattle Mayor Charles Royer left his job as a television news analyst with King Broadcasting in 1977 when he decided to run.

"I felt that the kind of stuff I was doing, I couldn't stay on the air after I decided to run," Royer said. "Or if I did, I couldn't talk about anything related to city government or the other candidates."

Federal law requires radio and television stations to offer free air time to all candidates if one candidate gets free time. In Ross's case, if he were a candidate, that could mean nearly three hours a day for each of the two Democrats now in the race, Alex Alben and Heidi Behrens-Benedict.

Olinger said she has asked company attorneys to advise them on any legal repercussions but didn't see any problem at this point. Having Ross as a subject of the news wouldn't affect his ability to cover the news, she said.

Berendt confirmed this week he had recently asked Ross if he was interested in running in the 8th Congressional District, and Berendt plans a poll testing how Ross would fare in the race. The district covers much of east and south King County and east Pierce County.

Media personalities face potential ethical and legal conflicts between their jobs and a possible political career, thanks to their access to people and the mission of most news organizations to be politically independent.

The ethical restrictions are less clear for media personalities like talk-show hosts than for news reporters, said Aly Colón, ethics group leader at the Poynter Institute, a school for working journalists in St. Petersburg, Fla.

News reporters should avoid doing things that might raise questions about their ability to be independent, Colón said. But talk-show hosts often act as entertainers who are supposed to express opinions.

"The idea that he might move toward running for office wouldn't be much different to me from a movie star," said Colón, a former Seattle Times reporter and editor.

Warren Cornwall: 206-464-2311 or wcornwall@seattletimes.com

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company

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