Friendly, Harmless Media Coverage

Date: 2015-10-07; view: 490.

TV Commercials and Print Ads

Newsless News Conferences

The sure-fire way for a candidate to get media coverage is to invite reporters to a news conference for an "important announcement." That announcement could be the same tired 10-point economic plan that the candidate has announced twice a week for the past six months. It could be a "major endorsement" from his Sunday School teacher or a "demand for the truth" about why an opponent refuses to debate.

3. "Exclusive" One-on-One Interviews

Nothing tempts reporters like a chance for an exclusive interview. A campaign will sometimes dangle these offers just before election day to guarantee news coverage. Campaign experts know an exclusive interview will be promoted heavily and be given more space in a newspaper or more time in a TV newscast than a typical day-to-day campaign story. That's free publicity.

Any candidate with enough money will spend some of it on TV and print advertisements. Just like all other ads, the aim is to sell a product, not necessarily to tell the entire truth about the candidate or his campaign.

Ever wonder why a politican who has no time to be a guest on a show like Meet the Press is suddenly available to appear on The Late Show with David Letterman? It's not because his schedule suddenly opened up.

President Obama has even taken a seat next to Letterman. That type of setting allows a politician to be on TV without being asked pesky questions about his policies.