Candidates buy ad time before campaign season

WASHINGTON -- Political candidates and interest groups have spent at least $13.56 million reserving time for nearly 25,886 television ads in the past three months of the campaign season, according to an Arkansas Democrat-Gazette review of thousands of advertising contracts filed with the Federal Communications Commission.

In the final weeks before the Nov. 4 general election, Arkansas candidates are banking on voters watching Wheel of Fortune, nightly news and Judge Judy. At least those are some of the shows around which the campaigns have clustered ads, contracts show.

Ads about the nationally watched U.S. Senate race between incumbent Mark Pryor, D-Ark., and U.S. Rep. Tom Cotton, R-Ark., have proliferated over the past year. Ads about the three competitive U.S. House races, the governor's race and other constitutional offices also have grown in frequency and number.

The number of ads and amounts spent are likely to fluctuate in the coming weeks as campaigns adjust their ad buys based on polling, the actions of their opponents and how much money is left.

University of Arkansas at Fayetteville associate political science professor Andrew Dowdle said a lot has changed since the 2012 election, when Arkansans may have watched an entire evening of television without seeing a political ad. Dowdle teaches about campaigns and elections.

"In 2012, you'd be watching television and you'd almost feel neglected. I don't think anybody's going to feel neglected in terms of political advertisements over the next three months," he said.

Only broadcast stations are required to post information about political ads online.

On Aug. 7, the Federal Communications Commission invited public comment on a potential rule to require cable, satellite and radio stations to post the same information online. Currently, such information is public but accessible only by visiting the individual stations, making it difficult to tell how much money is spent in those outlets.

NEWS, GAME SHOWS POPULAR

The FCC contracts show that candidates and groups from both parties have reserved ads during the morning news shows like Good Morning America, and game shows, particularly Wheel of Fortune.

Candidates who have made purchases so far are Pryor and Cotton, as well as gubernatorial candidates Republican Asa Hutchinson and Democrat Mike Ross. Two of the three lieutenant governor candidates, Democrat John Burkhalter and Republican U.S. Rep. Tim Griffin, have reserved space, as have the 2nd District congressional candidates -- Republican French Hill and Democrat Patrick Henry Hays. Nate Steel, the Democratic candidate for attorney general, also has purchased space.

As of Thursday, Pryor had spent at least $2.46 million reserving at least 5,360 ad slots statewide in the last three months of the campaign. Cotton had spent at least $1.19 million reserving at least 2,638 ad slots statewide.

Pryor's staff would not comment on his advertising strategy for the last weeks of the campaign. Cotton campaign spokesman David Ray would not comment on strategy beyond saying the campaign also plans a strong online presence using social media.

Pryor started the year with $4.2 million to Cotton's $2.2 million. While Cotton has reported raising more than Pryor on several campaign finance reports since, he reported having $2.75 million on hand in his July report, while Pryor had $4.2 million.

Cotton's campaign has spent $1,755 for an ad to run during Dancing with the Stars on KATV in Little Rock the night before the November election. Pryor's campaign has spent $1,035 to reserve three spots during The Price is Right the week before the election on KTHV in Little Rock. Hays' campaign spent $370 to run an ad during the soap opera The Young and the Restless the last week of September on KTHV.

Ross' campaign has spent $12,000 to reserve a spot during Wheel of Fortune every night in the week before the election on KATV in Little Rock.

Hill's campaign spent $255 to run an ad during Meet the Press on KARK in Little Rock last week.

What a time slot costs depends on the time of day, what show is on and how close to Election Day the ad will run.

For example, Hays' campaign bought 30 seconds on KTHV in Little Rock between 4:30 and 5:30 a.m. for $20, while Crossroads Grassroots Policy Strategies, a conservative group funded in part by Republican strategist Karl Rove, bought 30 seconds during several Arkansas Razorback games on KTHV for $22,000 each.

Special events are big draws for campaign spending.

Hutchinson's campaign has paid $900 for an ad on KNWA in Northwest Arkansas during the Emmy Awards on Aug. 25. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee paid $4,480 for one spot on KARK during the Dallas Cowboys-Baltimore Ravens preseason game Saturday.

Hundreds of the reserved campaign advertising spots are in the two weeks before Election Day.

There is evidence that inundating the airwaves influences voters, said Judith Trent, University of Cincinnati professor emeritus of communication. She studies campaign strategies and political communication, and is working on the eighth edition of her textbook Political Campaign Communication: Principles and Practices.

"Candidates really do believe, and their advisers really do believe, that it works, and there is a fair amount of evidence that suggests that that is the case," Trent said. "You're going to have to listen to a lot more of them. Unless there is absolutely no money, they are going to be using ads; they are going to be using a lot of ads."

Trent said candidates try to end the last week or two of the campaign with ads that talk about their accomplishments and goals, instead of criticizing their opponents.

"In other words, trying to end the campaign on a positive note even though it may have been bloody [and] negative the whole time," Trent said.

ADS TARGET UNDECIDED VOTERS

A lot of thought goes into picking what shows to run ads on, said Darrell West, vice president of governance studies at the Brookings Institution.

He said campaigns have likely done extensive polls and know which groups of undecided voters they need to influence before Election Day. In the end, ads are meant to sway only a small number of voters.

West researches technology for Brookings, a nonprofit, nonpartisan public policy organization, and is the author of the book Air Wars: Television Advertising in Election Campaigns.

"You really want to focus on the part of the undecided vote where you have the greatest advantage. That could be based on particular issues or demographic qualities," West said. "It's not about the three-quarters of people that have already made up their mind, it's about the one-quarter that will decide the election."

West said that the times and shows during which an ad runs tell a lot about whom the campaigns are trying to appeal to.

"Ads are very targeted these days. Everyone has particular audiences they want to emphasize. It could be senior citizens or young people or Latino voters, and so you want to purchase ad time around shows that are heavy on the demographics that you value," West said.

News shows attract older viewers and people who follow politics, while game shows and soap operas typically have a large female viewership, he said.

Campaigns try to pre-empt their opponents by purchasing far in advance of Election Day, West said.

Many challengers have a harder time buying ad time early because they don't have a campaign war chest built up like many incumbents do, he said.

"It takes challengers longer to raise the money. Even if they end up with the same amount of money they often raise it later rather than earlier. So it's harder for them to do early ad buys because when you purchase the ad, you have to pay for it," West said.

"Because Arkansas is a very competitive state and one of the crucial areas for control of the Senate, there is a huge amount of outside money that's going to come into the state, so the candidates have to buy the ad time now to make sure that these groups don't end up buying all of the desirable time slots," West said. "The stations only have a certain number of minutes in each hour where they can sell ads."

West said the advertising blitz is "absolutely" a boon for local television stations.

"They love competitive races, competitive Senate races, because that's where the big money is going these days."

Several Arkansas stations said candidates and outside groups can continue buying ads up until Election Day, but it might cost them more.

KNWA General Manager Lisa Kelsey said there is no deadline for candidates to purchase ad time.

"They can buy all the way up to the time of the election," she said. "We only have so much inventory to sell. If the inventory gets sold out, there's still ways you can buy in."

Candidates and political groups can opt to pay higher rates and pre-empt other advertisers if there are no free spots available, KHBS in Fort Smith Sales Manager Chad Happersett said.

"We could be full in one area," Happersett said. "They have to move up [a] rate if we're full."

Metro on 08/18/2014

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