2012, March 9 : Super Pacs could drive total 2012 election spending to $9.8B

A study by the research firm Borrell Associates projects that election spending in 2012 will reach a stratospheric $9.8 billion, vs. about $7 billion in 2008. (The figures include 13,000 statewide, congressional and municipal races, as well as the presidential election.)

Spending by PACs, national political party committees, and the super PACs is projected to be $4.76 billion, or 48% of all spending. Super PACs were created by the Supreme Court’s 2010 Citizens United decision, in which it determined that spending by corporations and unions can’t be restricted.

Cable TV is the main beneficiary.

The report estimates that $468 million was spent on cable in 2008 and that the number will roughly double this year.

Borrell also expects to see more municipal candidates, such as aspiring school-board and city-council members, vying for TV time, as lower levels of political office rachet up their campaign spending from cycle to cycle.

Online spending is also expected to get a huge bump and is projected to reach $159.2 million, a sixfold increase from 2008, though it would still represent only 1.5% of overall campaign spending. (Some political strategists estimate that it will be higher for many races this cycle,  approaching 12%.)

Spending on paid search is projected to rise, because buying up Google keywords with opponents names’ and other campaign buzzwords has become a basic step in the political playbook, though paid search’s share of online spending could fall to about one-third from 49% in 2008. Meanwhile, targeted display ads are projected to get a larger share, approaching 30%, as candidates look to hone digital messaging for specific audiences.

2012, February 20 :

As candidates near that peculiar phenomenon of the presidential-primary season known as « Super Tuesday, » the GOP rivals of former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney may not be able to afford the advertising blitz needed to carry that day.

Having spent most of the money they raised last year, the Republican candidates are taking advantage of a lull in the campaign to frantically seek more cash so they can compete in the seven states that hold primaries and the three that hold caucuses March 6.

According to Federal Election Commission reports,Mr. Romney raised about $56 million last year, Rep.Ron Paul of Texas raised almost $26 million and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich $12.6 million.

Mr. Santorum, a former U.S. senator from Pennsylvania whose recent victories in Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado have turned the bid for the GOP nomination into a two-man contest between him and Mr. Romney, raised the least — a paltry $2.2 million.

The question then, is will Mr. Santorum, who will likely continue to have a fundraising disadvantage, be able to afford the kind of advertising needed to get his message across a wide swath of the nation on Super Tuesday?

Mr. Santorum’s campaign has raised about $3 million after his sweep of victories last week.

But Mr. Sabato said the candidate is still very dependent on « his billionaire financial angel from Wyoming, » Foster Friess, a donor to conservative causes who made his fortune in mutual funds. Mr. Friess is a major contributor to the Red, White and Blue PAC, which spent nearly half a million dollars in last-minute ads in Iowa that helped give Mr. Santorum a surprise victory in the nation’s first primary of the season. That PAC is expected to step into play on Super Tuesday.

While the GOP candidates expend their resources pummeling each other in what could be a long fight, the president, who has no primary challenger, raised more last year than any of his potential rivals put together — more than $125 million.

Mr. Obama has also grudgingly accepted the help of a new super PAC, Priorities USA, which is run by some of his former aides.

2012, February 5 :

« it’s half time in America », the most talked about advertisement of the Super Bowl became one of the loudest flash points yet in the re election campaign :

- David Axelrod, Mr Obama’s chief political strategist, sent a twitter message shortly after it aired « powerful spot, did Clint Eastwood shoot that, or just narrate it? »

- Karl Rove, the Republican strategist said Chrysler was trying to settle a debt to the Obama administration

- Referring to Sergio Marchionne, Chrysler CEO, Mr Rattner said « he doesn’t need anything from the government at this point »

- Democrats dismissed the idea that the ad amounted to political payback,

- Mr Eastwood in an e mail said politics were not in the equation, « the ad doesn’t have a political message…it’s about American spirit, pride and job growth »

in the polarized political climate of an election year, even a tradition as routine as a football championship can the thrust into a partisan light.

 

2012, February 4 :

Newt Gingrich, with 25 % of voting intention vs 45 % for Mitt Romney in Nevada’s Caucus will still be benefiting  from the money of Sheldon Adelson, who’s invested already 10 $M in the Restore our Future Super Pac.

2012, January 12 :

Michelle Obama on Twitter : @MichelleNews

News about First Lady Michelle Obama – UNOFFICIAL Twitter Account

2012, January :

Negative adverts will increase the spendings in this election, thanks to Super PACs, the result of a 2009 Supreme Court ruling that allows groups , known as expenditure-only committees, to raise and spend unlimited sums of money.

Presidential campaigns can raise a max of $5,000 from an individual donor but Super PACS have no such constraints.

The groups reported raising a total of $32m as of January 1st, of which Restore Our Future had raised more than $12m.

Candidates campaigns and the Super PACS spent a combined $16m on adverts in Iowa. almost half of all TV commercials in the state have been attack adverts.

The Super PACS lead to a division of the task, the candidate will concentrate on the positive and leave the negative to these groups.

2011, October 24

2012 election season will break previous spending records. In the presidential race alone, money spent on TV and digital advertising will grow substantially, topping the more than $1 billion spent in the record-setting 2007-2008 campaign cycle.

Ken Goldstein, president of Kantar Media’s Campaign Media Analysis Group, predicted $2.5 billion to $3.2 billion would be spent on all political advertising in this campaign cycle, with the presidential race accounting for a substantial portion of that ad spending.

« Ads in the presidential race will be the single largest sector, » Mr. Goldstein said.

President Barack Obama’s campaign has already spent about $1 million on internet ads, according to his campaign filings with the Federal Election Commission. An analysis by the Center for Responsive Politics shows the Obama campaign spent more than $26 million on internet advertising in 2007-2008 to help win the White House.

So far, his Republican challengers have spent a total of about $5 million on the internet.

As it has in the past, digital advertising is primarily intended to shore up a politician’s base, raise money and draw media attention to a campaign, said Jack Poor, VP-marketing at the Television Bureau of Advertising.

Mr. Poor said between 5% and 10% of advertising spending by White House hopefuls will be on digital ads. But he said increased money spent by presidential candidates on the internet will not mean less spent on TV, which he predicted will grow by 20%.

Most of that increase in TV spending will benefit local stations, although there may be some national advertising late in the campaign. Both the Obama and McCain campaigns bought national prime-time advertising in 2008. Local cable stations will receive about 15% of TV advertising dollars.

Money spent on print advertising, which the Center for Responsive Politics calculated at about $22 million in the 2007-2008 campaign, will lag considerably behind TV and internet spending.

 

13 juillet 2011 : since April, after 3 months of campaign,

Owned Media status :

9,1 M Twitter followers

22 M Facebook fans

Earned Media status :

31 000 one on one face to face conversations to reconnect with supporters

volunteers have been reaching out to supporters over the phone and in their communities logging over 290 000 conversations

552 462 people made a contribution

680 000 contributions have been made so far, with 98 % < 250 $, average beeing at 69 $

Owned and Earned efforts resulting in 86 M $ contribution after 3 months

 

25 mai 2011 : 2e visite d’état du Président  Obama en Grande Bretagne, Buckingham, Westminster, Kate et William…+ 1,76 M de fans sur Facebook (+9%) pour atteindre les 20,9M, meilleure opération de com que Ben Laden cf infra

5 mai 2011 : Ben Laden + 3 jours c’est + 142 060 fans pour Obama sur Facebook soit + 0,72 % seulement, à qui le tour ?

20 avril 2011 : Obama au siège de Facebook à Palo Alto pour parler économie en direct avec ses 19 millions d’amis…57 % des américains désapprouvent sa politique économique,

Donald Trump milliardaire rallié aux « birthers », grimpe dans les sondages (de 10 à 19 % des soutiens chez les Républicains selon CNN) en se démultipliant sur les plateaux TV (earned media) et dépasse 7 millions de téléspectateurs sur l’un de ses media privés « The Apprentice » sur NBC…

owned, earned media…avant la guerre du paid

8 avril 2011 : « are you in ? », ils sont déja 19 M sur Facebook et 7,3 M sur Twitter.

Sur le site : « This campaign is just kicking off. We’re opening up offices, unpacking boxes, and starting a conversation with supporters like you to help shape our path to victory. 2012 begins now, and this is where you say you’re in. »

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4 avril 2011 : Le Président élu par les media payants avec une share of voice deux fois supérieure à celle de Mc Cain (cf POE Story Obama 2008) annonce sa candidature dans les media gratuits (You Tube).

Le site web, http://www.barackobama.com/, media privé, star de la campagne 2008 est en place : donate now !