FCC Seeks More Transparency in Broadcast Political Ads

Image via WikipediaAdvertising Age reports that FCC commissioners last week stopped thinking about Janet Jackson's bare breast long enough to approve a measure that would require broadcasters of political ads to post online data including the names of the candidates supported in the ads, the cost, time and placement of the commericals and the name of the party requesting the ads and their reason for airing the ads.

The FCC proposal, aimed at increasing transparency regarding independent groups behind many political ads, will appear in the Federal Register in the coming weeks, where public comments will be solicited for 30 days, leading to the final version of the regulations. The National Association of Broadcasters has voiced concern about the proposed FCC rule and state broadcasters have gone further, urging the federal government to shoulder the compliance costs that they estimate would be $14 million annually after an initial $24 million outlay.

Television stations presently maintain the information in paper files that the FCC wants posted on the Internet.

Ad Revenues Sank for Top 100 Media Cos. in 2009

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Advertising Age reports ad revenues for the nation's  top 100 media companies dropped 4.3 percent for the first half of 2009 compared to the same period a year ago.

Revenue growth figures for the leading 100 media cos. tracked by the advertising industry bible were the lowest since 1991 and the 2009 decline represents the first such decline since Ad Age began tracking the top 100 firms in 1981. Last year, 11 of the top 100 media entities of 2008 filed for bankruptcy, though 6 of those have since emerged from insolvency, including the Chicago Sun-Times and the Star Tribune.

On the flip side, cable networks, cable systems, satellite tv and digital tv all grew in 2009.  Indeed, five of the nation's 10 largest media firms are cable or satellite-related, including Comcast, DirecTV, and Cox Enterprises.

Now, a Program from Your Sponsor...

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As if prime-time programming on the big 4 networks isn't hard enough to sit through, now comes word from Advertising Age that "in-show" ads may soon be the norm.

The ads would run on the top or bottom of the screen during the program. Recently, ABC reported that 29 percent of viewers remembered an ad that appeared in the center of weather graphics, rather than during a commercial break. Likewise, a series of crawl ads along the bottom of the screen during NASCAR race coverage yielded positive results.

Product placement has long been a part of contemporary movies. Might be fun if the ads matched the programming, such as Coppertone sunscreen during "Gilligan's Island" or an ad for Magellan GPS systems during "Lost." It won't be long before we're counting down the seconds before acts of terrorism on "24" courtesy of the Seiko on Jack Bauer's wrist.