Church segment blurs line between ad, news

Journalism experts worry that viewers might think the paid TV commercial on WFTS-Ch. 28 is a feature story.

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By ERIC DEGGANS

© St. Petersburg Times, published May 3, 2000

The billboards have popped up throughout St. Petersburg and Tampa, featuring a smiling Dr. Ron Clark and heralding the approach of a significant TV event.

A brief promotional announcement aired Monday on WFTS-Ch. 28 as well, promising "an exciting new segment here on ABC 28 Tampa Bay." On Tuesday at 5:56 p.m., viewers saw the finished product.

But a question remains: What is Win@Life?

Developed as a collection of two-minute segments by Clark, pastor of Living Water Church in Tampa, Win@Life will eventually feature interviews with various local and national celebrities on what it takes to find success in life -- airing Tuesdays and Thursdays on WFTS.

The debut segment, broadcast Tuesday, featured man-on-the-street-style interviews with people describing their definition of success. Church employee Pam Carlson said the group hopes to interview notables such as Tampa Mayor Dick Greco, motivational guru Peter Lowe and state Sen. Jim Hargrett, D-Tampa.

In the spot that aired Tuesday, Clark was never identified as a minister, did not mention the church and did not discuss Christ.

"Win@Life is designed to tell people they can be a success," said Clark, 43, who founded the 1,800-member, interdenominational charismatic church 13 years ago. "We're not trying to hide the fact of who I am. We felt that, rather than promoting the church, we would promote a message of hope."

Clark says the purpose of Win@Life isn't to win converts to his church or raise his profile as an evangelist.

"I'm trying to fit in this message where it's not a distraction to people," the pastor added. "The less religious noise, the better. What we try to do is remove as much distraction as possible and let there be a few minutes between a successful person and the viewer and maybe they'll connect."

But the placement of Win@Life -- in a commercial break between WFTS' 5:30 and 6 p.m. newscasts -- raises concern that the segments may be mistaken for a feature story in the ABC affiliate's show.

Executives at WFTS say Win@Life is a paid commercial, bought by Clark's ministry, featuring footage videotaped by the pastor's personnel using cameras and video equipment owned by the church.

The ABC28 logo that often appears at the lower right corner of the screen during the station's newscasts is absent from the Win@Life segment.

But unlike other commercials, Win@Life has been touted with billboards and a promotional announcement on WFTS outlining specific air times.

Clocking in longer than the typical 30-second or 1-minute commercial, Tuesday's segment didn't sell anything overtly, not even the ministry that paid for the air time.

The segment started with an animated graphic featuring the Win@Life logo and a drop of water causing ripples, dissolving into footage of Clark speaking to the camera.

Mike Killenberg, a professor of mass communications at the University of South Florida, said such placement and production may encourage casual viewers to mistake it for news content.

"If it's a paid message, and not part of the newscast, it should be clearly identified," added Killenberg, who reviewed a videotape of the segment provided by the church.

"WFTS is not letting people know the religious affiliation of the sponsor . . . it's like an infomercial. An infomercial for a lifestyle," he said. "This isn't (selling) a product. It's a man with a microphone standing there talking to the audience."

But officials at WFTS say such distinctions are not necessary; placing a sponsorship notification before Win@Life would be like running a bulletin before a Coca-Cola ad.

"He (Clark) is not sitting around the desk with anchor people . . . and he's not introduced by the anchor people . . . it's like any other commercial," said Jim Major, general manager at WFTS.

"This is probably a better message than a lot of stuff advertised in newspapers," Major added. "The average viewer couldn't care less about this blurring" between news and advertising.

Clark said the church's budget for broadcasting and advertising is $97,000. That includes a 30-minute broadcast of its Sunday service that will air at 6 a.m. Sundays on WFTS beginning next week.

According to a brochure at the church, the group developed a "Winning@Life"communication campaign with Manlove Church Marketing, a Texas-based company, "to develop television commercials, oriented billboards, theater slides, a web site and direct mail pieces promoting the Christian life."

Clark says the Win@Life segment is not related to "Winning@Life," a campaign he says the church has scraped.

The marketing effort dovetails with its "2K in Y2K" effort, reaching out to 2,000 non-believers to invite them into the church, the brochure said.