"Election spending on local TV surges; Amounts so far significantly above total for 2008 races" by Erin Ailworth |
Globe Staff, September 23, 2012
With Election Day still more than six weeks away, the amount spent on
political advertising on Boston television stations is already
significantly higher than it was for the entire 2008 campaign, driven by
a tight Senate race in Massachusetts and the presidential candidates’
feverish bid for electoral votes in New Hampshire....
a spending spree that is expected to accelerate....
The barrage may not please many viewers, but the political spots provide crucial revenue for Boston TV stations....
While websites and social media are figuring more prominently in
political campaigns this year — and print publications and radio still
account for some spending — television advertising on network affiliates
remains the main attraction.
Television is crucial in political campaigns in large
part because it is still one of the best ways to consistently reach
voters.
By federal mandate, candidates for president and Congress receive
preferential treatment when booking advertising time, and stations must
give equal airtime to each side of a race. Candidates can also buy
television advertising time at a discount from the going commercial
rate. The result all too often: back-to-back political spots which can
bump more lucrative commercial advertising.
Bruce Mittman, president of Mittcom, a Boston advertising and marketing agency, estimated that the US Senate race in Massachusetts between
Scott Brown and Elizabeth Warren has accounted for roughly half the
money spent in the Boston television market....
Both are buying time on popular day- and night-time shows that can
attract several million viewers nationwide — programs such as “Good
Morning America,” “Rachael Ray,’’ “Jeopardy!’’ and “2 Broke Girls.’’
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