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October 25, 2012

Voter billboard
Voter intimidation signs like this are coming down.

Ad Firms Will Take Down Voter-Intimidation Billboards

Two major outdoor advertising companies have agreed to remove a controversial message from their billboards. Voting-rights activists allege the message was designed to intimidate black and Hispanic voters in the swing states of Ohio and Wisconsin.

The billboards’ message said: “Voter Fraud is a Felony! Up to 3 ½ years & $10,000 fine.”

Mike Norton,  executive vice president of Norton Outdoor Advertising in Cincinnati, Ohio, said on Tuesday that the signs would be taken down as soon as possible.

On Sunday, Clear Channel Communications Inc. announced that it was taking down 145 billboards with an identical message that appeared in Cleveland, Cincinnati and Milwaukee. Clear Channel owns Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc., the world's billboard advertising company.

ColorofChange, a black online political organization, had launched an online petition drive to force Clear Channel to remove billboards.

“It is one of the nastiest voter suppression schemes we’ve seen. An anonymous group started running outrageous billboards that try to scare people away from voting,” ColorofChange wrote in an e-mail message.“The billboards are hosted by Clear Channel, a media conglomerate owned by Bain Capital, the same company that Mitt Romney founded.”

Romney is the Republican Party’s nominee for president.

The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, which is based in Washington, D.C., also launched a campaign to persuade Clear Channel to remove the billboard message.

Clear Channel, which is based in San Antonio, Texas, also syndicates conservative commentators Glenn Beck and Rush Limbaugh, said ColorofChange.

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