Cape Cod Stations Drop Political Ad



Candidates Perry and Keating/AP Photo

Under pressure from listeners, three Cape radio stations have pulled a political advertisement that graphically describes what a Wareham (Massachusetts) police officer did to a 14-year-old girl.
Capecodonline.com reports WXTK, WCOD and WCIB, three stations owned by Qantum Communications, have removed the ad, purchased by the American Family First Action Fund, after receiving complaints about its content, said Allison Makkay, the radio group's general manager.

"Because there were some questions about the content and the  accuracy, we have the discretion," said Makkay, who consulted the company's attorney before pulling the ads. "We received a slew of complaint calls."

Makkay said because the ad was not sponsored by a candidate, the station faced increased liability if the content was wrong. "So we decided it was better for us to take a step back," she said.

The advertisement targets 10th Congressional District candidate Jeffrey Perry's role in a strip search scandal that rocked the Wareham Police Department in the early 1990s. Scott Flanagan, an officer under Perry's command, pleaded guilty to the illegal strip searches of two teen girls, including a 14-year-old girl who was also sexually assaulted by the officer. In that 1991 incident, Perry was at the scene but has said he did not hear the girl's screams for help.

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