Political Ads at All Time High
As the years progress, the media's role in politics becomes even more embedded and prominent, and this directly relates to the exposure and release of political advertisements. According to Bargielska (2024), the United States is expected to hit a whopping $12.32 billion this years in relation to political ads, which is "nearly three times what it was in 2016." This amount is also significantly more than the amount spent on political advertisements during the 2020 election.
Political ads are a great way for politicians to reach both broad and specific audiences, and it increasingly influences the political landscape. Ads are a great way to for politicians to gain exposure and reach audiences to their agenda with the main goal of persuading them to vote for them in the current election. In this upcoming election, in particular, digital advertisement and the use of social media will be heavily prominent. This occurrence is raising concerns that the spread of misinformation will also become more prevalent, as these ads must "grapple with the challenges posed by generative AI and the proliferation of misinformation" (Bargielska, 2024).
It is important that we understand that political ads can carry a stream of misinformation and to not fall for appealing images and videos. As online services and digital media become more embedded in today's society, these types of instances may become more prominent. How do you feel about politicians spending $12.32 billion on political ads?
Sources:
Bargielska, K. (2024). The US political ad spend in 2024 nearly three times what it was in 2016. AdTonos. https://www.adtonos.com/the-us-political-ad-spend-in-2024-nearly-three-times-what-it-was-in-2016/
I could see what the source from your post says being true, I'm pretty sure there's been a lot more political advertising being spread around than 2016, but I admit that could also have been because I was only 14 at the time and wasn't as aware of the world. Additionally it makes sense that more of it is used on online/digital advertising because not as much print media is reaching an audience, even aside from newspapers and magazines there aren't really many building postings or wall flyers around. And with such a polarized political field, most people already know what sort of person they want to vote for and won't be easily dissuaded, we're seeing a decreasing number of political moderates.
ReplyDeleteI think this is definitely huge for campainges and things going on in the world when it comes to politics. I think the$ $12.3 billion in political campaignes shows how much things are changing within the time. I think it is interesting to showcase that number because it holds an importance in where we are at in a political standpoint on funds and money. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI think $12.3 billion is such a large indicator that social media has become a huge asset in politics. I am glad to see this change, I think we are always evolving and especially within politics, it is so important to keep up to date with that change to ensure we aren’t using archaic practices.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!
Hi Amanda! I personally think that ad spending is critical but a figure of 12.3 billion is a little extreme. In my opinion, the overabundance of ads my deter people from researching the candidate and actually learning about their policies. Another problem is that ads are very divisive as the provide little information on political platforms and can just focus on tarnishing the other opponent. So while ad spending is insectary its important for people to look beyond the ads for facts.
ReplyDeleteGreat post!