MD Radio: Personality Seeking Office Wants To Remain On-Air

'Mo' Scott-Taylor

Maureen Scott-Taylor, morning show co-host at WCEI 96.7 FM in Easton, Maryland, has a problem — too much publicity, according to stardem.com.

She is  running for local political office and as “Mo”of The Morning Rush with Matt and Mo on the WCEI and she broadcasts along with Matt Spence every weekday morning from 5:30 a.m. to 9 a.m., 3 ½ hours a day, five days a week — totaling 17 ½ hours a week in air time.

It’s OK with the Federal Communications Commission if she runs for office, but according to its rules, the radio station must give all candidates running against her equal time, unless they sign a waiver.

Scott-Taylor said that when she originally wanted to run for office she went to the radio station’s owners and they said it was fine, but she could not talk about politics on the air.

At first her understanding of FCC rules, Section 315, was that she would have to go off the air 60 days prior to the general election in November, a rule put forth by the FCC to foster revenue generated by election advertising.

WCEI 96.7 FM (12.5Kw) 60dBu Coverage

That would mean that she would not work from mid-September through the election in November.

Later Scott-Taylor was told by the FCC that she would need to get waivers from the other candidates to continue working until September.

So now she has to get each of the other candidates for a seat on the county council — nine in all — to sign a waiver and return it to WCEI or she either cannot run for office or must not do her morning broadcast during the campaign.

The rule will be effective beginning March 10, 2014, when the ballots are certified and each candidate becomes legally certified.

She has sent out letters with the waivers to each candidate and has given everyone the deadline of noon this Friday, March 7 to return the waivers.

In turn, she stated in the letter that she would not get into any “discussion regarding her campaign for County Council” on the air.

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