Political Ads: America Discovers Columbus

WBNS-TV Columbus OH

Sunday, 13 May 2012 00:00
By Michael Winship, Moyers & Co. | Report  

If you live in Columbus, Ohio, my sympathy.
Don’t get me wrong. Columbus is a wonderful town – the state capital, birthplace of the late great humorist James Thurber, location of Ohio State University and my brother Tim.
But if you’re a television viewer in Columbus you may be wishing about now that you could jump into your set and join the castaways on Survivor. According to the newspaper USA Today, “As the amount of money spent on political persuasion has risen, there are now some places where political ads are more like a steady rain. Here in Columbus, it is pouring.”

“Columbus draws a lot of political advertising because it’s the largest city in a big swing state that this year also has a heated Senate contest and congressional races reconfigured by redistricting. What’s different here is that when the campaigns end, the advertising keeps on going. Political ads are on the air in Columbus all the time.
“That’s great news for the local TV stations battered by a recession that torpedoed their commercial advertisers. ‘We’re on the other end saying, “Thank you.” We’re running around with a bushel basket trying to catch it when it falls,’ said Tom Griesdorn, general manager of WBNS-TV, the Columbus CBS affiliate.”

He’ll get no thanks from the channel surfers of Columbus. Since March of last year, according to the public access files at WBNS, the station has aired 2,588 political spots that pulled in $2.16 million. And it’s only one of five commercial TV outlets in the area.  READ MORE