“Equal time” rule

Under the FCC's "equal time" rule, if a political candidate obtains time on a broadcast station, other candidates for the same office (or their appointed representatives) may obtain an "equal opportunity" on that station. An equal opportunity usually includes equal time, but the term means more than equal time. For example, it means the right to obtain time in a period likely to attract approximately the same size audience as the period in which the opposing candidate appeared. News shows are exempt.