As the 2005 U.S. elections are approaching, Nielsen Monitor-Plus takes a closer look at political advertising for recent months and some of the local campaigns throughout the country.
Political
TV, Radio, Print Play Politics As Usual.
Results of the previous elections this month are in, but analysts are still fighting over the advertising returns. Which medium was the 2005 political kingmaker: radio, TV, or print? It was probably a combination of all three media that played key roles in this year’s elections, and reaped record political ad dollars in the process.
Political Television Ad Spending Sets Record For ‘Off Year’ Elections.
After some of the most hotly contested “off year” political races in history, TNS Media Intelligence/CMAG announced that 2005 political and issue advertising on television reached a record $515 million for an “off year” election season. In gubernatorial and mayoral elections from New Jersey and Virginia to New York City and Los Angeles, candidates increasingly turned to television advertising to communicate their messages and gain recognition.
The Latino Vote In Key States.
Latino voters in electoral vote-rich states such as Texas, Florida and California can make a statewide electoral vote outcome difference if as few as 3-4% of Latino voters switch parties or change their candidate preferences, according to an analysis of recently-released Census data on the 2004 election, conducted by the Tomás Rivera Policy Institute (TRPI) at the University of Southern California.
Task Force On Television Measurement Urges Senate & House To Reject TV Ratings Oversight Bills.
The Independent Task Force on Television Measurement today urged the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation and the House Commerce Committee to decline legislation that would require new oversight of TV ratings. In letters to the Committees, Task Force Chairwoman Cardiss Collins warned that the bills would “significantly roll back much of the progress” that the organization and Nielsen have achieved toward more accurately measuring how audiences of color watch television.
L.A.’S New Mayor & How Hispanics Will Change American Politics.
Los Angeles Mayor-Elect Antonio Villaraigosa accomplished what Democrats dream of doing nationwide: he energized Latino voters to turn out for him at historic levels and stitched together the sort of multiracial coalition that has often eluded less-gifted politicians, Newsweek reports. In the May 30 Newsweek cover “Latino Power” (on newsstands Monday, May 23), Miami Bureau Chief Arian Campo-Flores and Chief Political Correspondent Howard Fineman assess the impact of Villaraigosa’s
election on national politics and the Latino vote.
NCLR Hails The Election Of Villaraigosa As Mayor Of Los Angeles.
The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., hails the momentous victory of Antonio Villaraigosa, who today becomes Los Angeles, California’s first Latino mayor since 1872.
Pew Hispanic Center Study: Spanish Language Coverage Of 2004 Campaign.
This study, conducted in partnership with the Lear Center Local News Archive (University of Southern California Annenberg School for Communication), provides important baseline data on how U.S. politics is covered by the Spanish-language broadcast media.
GOP 527s Outspend Dems In Late Ad Blitz.
This late surge in advertising was led by two anti-Kerry or pro-Bush groups—Swift Boat Vets and POWs for Truth and Progress for America Voter Fund—which together spent $23 million. Much of their money went to key battleground states including Ohio, which received at least $6.6 million in advertising expenditures and ultimately won Bush the election.
More Than 7.6 Million Latinos Vote In Presidential Race.
More than 7.6 million Latinos went to the polls in the national elections of 2004, increasing their voter participation by more than 1.6 million over the 2000 presidential election, according to preliminary results of a turnout study conducted by the William C. Velasquez Institute (WCVI) on Election Day.
$1.45B In US Political Spending.
U.S. political advertising spending for 2004 is projected to exceed $1.45 billion, according to data released by TNS Media Intelligence/CMR, the leading provider of strategic advertising and marketing information.
The Election As An Example Of Marketing.
I wrote this article on Sunday without the knowledge of who will have won the election. Regardless of who wins (and if there is a clear “winner” at all), there will certainly have been one of the largest voter turnouts of the last 20 years and I think that this fact is a direct result of the Web.
