Insider Report from NewsMax.com

NBC Will Stop Fred Thompson Reruns
If Fred Thompson announces his intention to run for the White House, NBC-TV is prepared to stop showing reruns of the “Law & Order” episodes he appears in because of Federal Communication Commission regulations.

Those rules allow presidential candidates to demand equal time if an opponent appears on TV. Stations did not air Ronald Reagan’s films or TV appearances when he ran for president in 1980, nor did they broadcast Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicles during his run for California governor in 2003.

But with “Law & Order,” there a catch: The show is syndicated on the cable station TNT, which does not have to abide by the equal time rule because cable stations don’t use the public airwaves, The New York Times points out.

However, TNT could choose to stop showing Thompson episodes voluntarily, just as cable networks did during Schwarzenegger’s campaign.
Do you think? TNT is owned by CNN. They'll choose to stop.

In May, Thompson told NBC he did not want to appear in any new “Law & Order” episodes, and his final episode was rerun on Aug. 5.

In September, the Times reports, Sam Waterston — who played Thompson’s deputy on the show — will replace him in the role of district attorney.
NewsBusters