The public got a preview of what an NDP attack ad looks like earlier this month when the New Democrats released a fast and loose 30-second spot slamming Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s (Calgary Southwest, Alta.) economic record over a menacing drum beat and a few unflattering still-shots of the Prime Minister. The clip ends with quick mentions of changes to Old Age Security and Employment Insurance.
“Stephen Harper has created the worst deficit in Canadian history, and you are paying the price,” the narrator intones.
The NDP salvo is a direct response to the Conservatives’ first attack ad against Tom Mulcair (Outremont, Que.) since he became leader of the NDP and official opposition in March. That ad, which began circulating online in late June, goes after Mr. Mulcair and the NDP’s economic policies while delivering unflattering images of the leader over an eerie soundtrack.
“Risky Theories. Dangerous economic experiments. We can’t afford Mulcair’s NDP,” viewers are told.
But for all the attention the ads have received in political coverage, it’s unlikely that most Canadians who aren’t actively engaged in federal politics have seen the ads.
MediaStyle principal Ian Capstick, who previously served as press secretary to the late NDP leader Jack Layton, said that although the NDP’s ad was aimed at Liberal and NDP swing voters, few will see it without a major media buy.
“Earned media play in advance of a media buy is par for the course. The question remains, how much money is behind the advertisement when it finally gets to television and the internet,” Mr. Capstick observed.
There has yet to be a confirmed report of the NDP’s ad appearing on television nationally or regionally, while the Conservative ad attacking Mr. Mulcair has reportedly been airing on OMNI television stations in British Columbia.
When it comes to buying air time, a nationally-aired, 30-second spot during highly rated prime time programming can cost between $15,000 and $25,000, said Paul Schnabel, principal and founder of Dicomm International, a Toronto-based media representation firm.
When it comes to web advertising, banner advertisements can cost between $4 and $20 per thousand appearances.
Television advertising costs depend on a program's ratings. CTV News, with an average audience of 1,219,000 viewers, could charge from $21,000 for a single 30 second ad.
“When people put together campaigns, they’re trying to buy a cumulative number of ratings points to build up to a level where they think they’re having a meaningful impact,” Mr. Schnabel explained.
“Typically, we are seeing advertisers develop a multimedia strategy in the political advertising sector combining print, digital, TV and radio.”
According to financial returns for 2011, an election year, the Conservative Party spent more than $14-million on advertising last year, while the Liberal party spent nearly $11.8-million. The NDP has yet to file its financial return for 2011 with Elections Canada, but in the previous election year of 2008, the party spent nearly $8-million on advertising.
Outside of election periods, political parties are hesitant to spend large amounts on advertising, said Mr. Capstick.
“There’s just not enough money in Canadian politics,” he said. “The only time that a party has any possibility of entering the market as strong as a car company or major consumer product, is during an election where there are multiple millions of dollar at play for their ad buy.”
While Mr. Capstick said the recent NDP ad was aimed at voters who sometimes vote New Democrat, Summa Strategies principal and Conservative pundit Tim Powers dismissed both the NDP and Conservative ads as “bravado for the converted.”
“It’s more pacifying party supporters on both sides,” he observed. “It’s not necessarily about moving the uncoverted into your column at this point in time, because if that were the case you'd see big, heavy ad buys occurring, but it's way too early for that.”
Mr. Powers said that if a political party was serious about taking a shot at its rivals this summer it would buy ad time during the Olympics.
“That’s when you know this is something beyond a little spitball fight amongst the teenage, pimply-faced political parties in the summer,” said Mr. Powers, who was doubtful that any party had the resources to buy substantial airtime so far from the next federal election, which is slated for the fall of 2015.
A single, 30-second ad spot on Olympic broadcaster CTV during the games could cost between $20,500 and $60,000, depending on the event and time of day, according to Mr. Schnabel of Dicomm International.
The reality is that few Canadians have seen the ads, and the parties are getting free mileage from national press, said Rob Silver, a partner with Crestview Strategies and a Liberal pundit.
“It’s partly a test, it’s partly trying to get some earned [coverage] out of the media covering the ad itself, which to that extent, has been successful,” Mr. Silver observed. “In terms of truly defining Tom Mulcair or Stephen Harper, you need to spend money to have an actual impact.”
Interim Liberal leader Bob Rae (Toronto Centre, Ont.) was himself a target of Conservative ads attacking his record as NDP premier of Ontario earlier this year. The ad, which questioned Mr. Rae’s economic competence, aired regionally last March, and the Liberal Party did not respond—a choice Mr. Silver said he believes was the right decision.
“It would have been a little bit awkward to spend money defending an interim leader,” Mr. Silver said. “Were we really going to spend a million dollars of relatively limited resources to defend somebody who’s not a permanent leader?”
While Mr. Capstick said that the Liberals are currently struggling to maintain relevance compared to the Conservatives and New Democrats, Mr. Silver said that the negative tone of the Tory and NDP ads could work to his own party’s advantage.
“There is a foreseeable scenario where we can jujitsu that dynamic and take advantage of the electorate’s frustration with how polarized and negative things are,” Mr. Silver said. “To the extent that our opponents want to spend money beating each other up now, I actually don’t think that’s a bad thing for the Liberals, whatsoever.”
Original Article
Source: hill times
Author: Chris Plecash
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