Much of these billions are raised for political advertising. The networks get it. No wonder, they are out to sell more than tell.
Listen to the editor of Cable Fax, an industry publication that is planning a Webinar to help TV executives "monetize" (i.e., make more money from) the 2012 elections and its vast "political spend."
Here's editor Amy Maclean pitching her media readers in high places:
"The 2012 elections will be here before you know it, so now is the perfect time to start planning your strategy and make sure to maximize your share of the political ad spend. Join usTuesday, August 30 for our CableFAX Webinar: Monetize Election 2012: Advanced Political Advertising . You'll get sound advice and practical tips to make the most of interactivity and multiplatform campaigns.
"While cable's total of campaign ad dollars continues to climb to record levels , (emphasis mine) the next question is how to make that two-way plan more attractive to campaigns through the use of Video On Demand (VOD,) RFIs, online and other interactive elements.
"Last year, California Republican gubernatorial candidate Meg Whitman helped put RFI (Request for Information) political spots on the map, using the technology to allow viewers to request things such as bumper stickers and volunteer info. The innovation continues, with 2012 expected to really help the industry further distinguish itself with its advanced political advertising offerings.
"Additionally, the recent Citizens United Supreme Court case opened the way for corporations and unions to drop major coin to back candidates and issues."
Cable Fax wants its readers to know how best to "navigate the race in November and drive additional advertising revenues," i.e. ("drop coin" in their pockets.)
The irony is that while most TV networks insist they are bi-partisan and don't flack for any candidates, their coverage is, in effect, flacking for themselves -- to bolster revenues by siphoning off as many political donations that they can slip and slide into their own coffers.
This corporate self-interest is rarely explained or even admitted but in a tough advertising market---with the economy in collapse mode---politics primes the media pump.
Campaigns are windfalls for broadcasters. The networks that oppose stimulus programs for workers with so many snarky stories, don't oppose this stimulus for themselves.
Promoting elections has become an industry of its own and TV networks are at the center of it. They are not devoting much time to promoting voter registration or voter education. They don't provided many free ads and in fact often refuse to run issue-oriented ads bought by activists.
This agenda is wrapped up in the mantle of enabling democracy but it is of course much more than that. Most of the coverage is about the personality parade and horse race, not the issues. It focuses on canddiates more than political organizing. There seems to be little concern with new measures like voter ID cards designed to suppress the vote, or electoral fraud designed to steal it.
The fact is that the political circus is good for business, not democracy. The Providence Phoenix reports, "Political coverage on television is diminishing, and revenue from political advertising is soaring. Critics say free airtime for candidates could help solve the problem:
Writes Ian Donnis, "The Alliance for Better Campaigns (ABC), a Washington, DC-based nonpartisan group that advocates for political campaigns that inform voters and increase their participation in the political process, is pushing a proposal that would force broadcasters to offer free air time to political candidates before elections -- in addition to increasing political coverage overall. Proponents say the idea is the next frontier in campaign-finance reform.
These proposals have been around for years, endorsed by former Presidents and the late Walter Cronkite, but they have gone nowhere. Why? Why should the networks give away air time when they are paid so handsomely for it?
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