The Verdict with Ted Cruz podcast has been under the microscope from the Federal Election Commission. But a verdict has been rendered and it is a positive one for iHeartMedia.
A complaint had been lobbied that the audio giant had given nearly $1 million in contributions to the super political action committee supporting Cruz, with the argument that it broke federal campaign finance laws in the process.
In 2024, the allegation was made that $961,435 went from iHeartMedia to the Truth and Courage PAC, which supports Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX). The complaint filed by watchdog groups argued that it was clear supervision of the federal law that states candidates can only solicit up to $5,000 for super PACs. Last year, the topic was also broached by MSNBC host Chris Hayes, who argued that it was a clear violation of the law.
The FEC, however, ruled in a 5-1 decision that no evidence tied Cruz to the payments or the solicitation of the funds being sent to the PAC. Additionally, it found no evidence that iHeartMedia was influenced by Cruz on how to allocate the payments.
“We are aware of no information indicating that iHeart made the payments to influence a federal election, or for any reason beyond a bona fide commercial arrangement that would have required the PAC to disclose the payments as ‘contributions’ instead of ‘other federal receipts.’”
At the time of the allegations, a spokesperson for Premiere Networks — a subsidy of iHeartMedia — claimed Cruz is not compensated for his time on the show and is a volunteer. The company did admit, however, that it does indeed sell advertising tied to the podcast, with the proceeds going to the PAC associated with the Senator.
Cruz began the Verdict podcast in 2020. It was acquired by iHeartMedia in 2022. The podcast features Cruz and iHeartMedia Memphis and Premiere Networks host Ben Ferguson discussing the news of the day. It releases several new episodes each week.
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