TV Stations to Win Political Ads Thanks to Supreme Court

[Purveyor]

By Sarah Rabil Apr 2, 2014 11:34 AM ET

The owners of local TV stations such as CBS Corp. (CBS) and Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. (SBGI) may see more advertising money flowing in during the next election season thanks to the nation’s highest court today.

A divided U.S. Supreme Court struck down decades-old limits on the total amount of money that donors can give to federal candidates and parties, issuing its biggest campaign-finance ruling since the 2010 Citizens United decision.

“The big question is, will this result in incremental spending on political advertising? And I think the answer is yes,” said Paul Sweeney, an analyst for Bloomberg Industries. “Political advertising has become a huge business for local television stations.”

Broadcast TV stations generally receive a windfall every election year, and the biggest benefactors will be those stations in swing states like Florida, Ohio and Illinois, or where there are contested seats, Sweeney said. Political ad spending has been increasing and companies like Gannett Co. (GCI) and Tribune Co., which have stepped up their investments in local stations, will also benefit, he said.

Voting 5-4 along ideological lines, the court today said the caps violated the speech rights of Shaun McCutcheon, an Alabama Republican official seeking to give candidates, parties and political committees more than the $123,200 maximum. The court stopped short of undercutting a 1976 ruling that allows caps on contributions to individual candidates.

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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-04-02/tv-stations-to-win-political-ads-thanks-to-supreme-court.html

[yeoman6987]

1. TV is the best way to get Democrats out to vote

Seriously why is everyone against this. Let me tell you something. In Maryland, we are having the governor's race and I have learned about Anthony Brown the Democrat running for Governor....had it not been for the commercials, I may have missed all his issues and really good positions and might have voted for another Democrat. TV commercials are important. I love DU to death but I did not learn about Anthony Brown on DU. I did not learn about Anthony Brown from President Obama. Heck I didn't even learn about Anthony Brown from Governor O'Malley who endorsed him and I didn't even know that until AFTER seeing his commercial (3 times over a week), it peaked my interest so I went and Googled him and found his "Anthony Brown for Governor" website. That is where I saw Governor O'Malley endorsed him.....I would not have known that if not for the initial commercial....oh and Elijah Cummings endorsed him too....heck if I would have known that. I did not see any thread on this important fact.

TV Commercials are important for the life of the Democratic Party.....that is just a fact and unfortunately truth.