COMING SOON TO YOUR STATION? CBD UNDERWRITING

Kroger, the nation’s largest grocery retailer, has announced that their stores in 17 states will soon begin selling hemp-derived CBD topical products, including creams, balms and oils. When Kroger makes this kind of move, it is just a matter of time until someone approaches your station wanting to buy underwriting spots to publicize that they are selling CBDs.

Welcome to one of the biggest gray areas in media and marketing today.

Advertising CBDs is even trickier than promoting medical or recreational marijuana in states where sales of it are now legal. CBDs are derived from marijuana plants but they not intoxicating because they use different compounds derived from cannabis.

CBD products are being promoted as wonder medications for the treatment of anxiety, cognition impairment, movement disorders, and pain. Though some studies have found that there are potential benefits of using CBDs, it is too soon to draw conclusions.

The fact is that possession and sale of marijuana is still illegal under Federal law. CBDs are in a murky category with some states saying it is legal and others saying it isn’t. However, it is highly unlikely that the manger of your Kroger is going be arrested by the feds for selling CBD’s.

Whether or not to allow announcements for CBDs has been a hot topic on the PRADO listserv, a bulletin board for station fundraising folks. This message from a station in Kansas is typical:

Good-Morning. What are your station’s policies on clients that sell CBD products? There has been an influx of stores that sell CBD products in our city, as well as existing businesses that are adding CBD oil to some of their products. Any input would be greatly appreciated!

Most of the station development people who have replied have had responses similar to this person from a station in Illinois who wrote:

We have decided to not run underwriting for these products yet, since the law in Illinois isn't quite clear on all their legality.  If others in the state do, then we can look at it again.  We are choosing to be cautious.

So, what would your station do if Kroger called and offered a five-figure underwriting purchase saying CBDs can be found in their local stores?

We found a recent discussion of this issue on DC attorney David Oxenford’s Broadcast Law Blog [link]. Oxenford wrote, in part:

David Oxenford

In the last few months, we probably have had more questions about advertising for CBD products than any other topic. At this point, CBD products seem to be sold in nearly every state in the country, and discussions about CBD’s effectiveness seem to be staples on national and local television talk programs. Broadcasters naturally ask whether they can advertise these seemingly ubiquitous products. Unfortunately, the state of the law on CBD at the current time is particularly confusing.

[Now that CBD] products sold at a big national retailer (where there is some expectation that the advertiser has done some of its own due diligence), may be able to satisfy themselves about the question of whether the CBD product that they are being asked to advertise was legally produced and is otherwise lawful.

But that does not end the broadcaster’s consideration as to whether to run a CBD ad. In fact, there may be far more serious questions to consider, given that a particular type of CBD may be illegal under federal law.

Until the FDA acts…it seems to still be a federal offense to sell any CBD product that is to be ingested – whether it is as a dietary supplement or as an additive to foods and beverages – unless the FDA has approved those products.

[Because of ]the broadcaster’s status as a federal licensee, it would seem as if steering clear of the promotion of products that are still prohibited under federal law would make sense.

There are no clear answers on CBD advertising yet. Consider these factors, consult with your own attorney and give some careful thought as to whether or not to accept CBD advertising on your station, and watch for developments as they occur in the coming months.

NIELSEN MAY PPM RATINGS FOR DENVER AND LAS VEGAS

Given today’s main topic, we decided to check the latest PPM ratings for two places where someone is lighting up a legal joint right now. First we have Denver in Colorado, the first state to legalize recreational weed. Then we have Las Vegas in Nevada, one of the most recent states do the same.