Politics-focused Twitter bots that warped news coverage and online discussions of the 2016 election have only grown more sophisticated in the few years since, according to a new study from computer scientists at the University of Southern California. The researchers first identified about 250,000 Twitter accounts that posted political keywords during both the 2016 general…
In a field of two dozen Democratic candidates for president, there’s naturally going to be a single-issue candidate or two. Until this week, one of them was Washington Governor Jay Inslee, running on solving the climate crisis. Inslee withdrew from the race this week, saying on MSNBC that it was clear he wasn’t “going to…
Texas-based migrant advocacy group RAICES, one of the leading voices in the political debate over President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, today posted a letter calling for ad agency network Ogilvy to stop working with U.S. Customs and Border Patrol. Published on Twitter, the letter is addressed to Lauren Crampsie, president of Ogilvy’s New York operations,…
Connected television and streaming platforms might offer new avenues to reach voters that are disillusioned with social media’s endless scandals, or are tuning out of linear, according to a new report. The study, conducted by programmatic platform Telaria and the Dish-owned OTT service Sling, surveyed a nationwide sample of 1,500 potential voters aged 18 to…
When it comes to socially-progressive companies, it’s hard to find one more progressive than Vista, Calif.-based Dr. Bronner’s soap. Family-owned, B Corporation certified, the top-selling brand of organic personal care products in the country, Dr. Bronner’s gives 10% of its revenues to charitable causes, maintains strict fair-trade policies globally and insists that “we must realize…
Ad tech is a multibillion-dollar behemoth that’s drawing devotees in every industry, from real estate to retail. So it shouldn’t be surprising that politicians are getting savvy about the space as well. Democratic presidential candidates Elizabeth Warren and Pete Buttigieg are both recruiting ad-tech specialists to manage their online marketing campaigns, according to online job…
An audio snafu briefly disrupted the first Democratic primary debate last night, co-hosted by NBCUniversal, but it didn’t impact NBCU’s ad inventory for the two-hour telecast, despite what moderator Chuck Todd seemed to indicate later in the program. The incident occurred shortly before 10 p.m. ET Wednesday during the debate, which aired on NBC, MSNBC…
The 2020 election cycle is projected to generate $6 billion in political advertising from presidential, federal and state candidates and their campaigns, according to a new study from Kantar, a consultancy company. Digital ad spend is expected to grow substantially, accounting for 20% of the total spend, about $1.2 billion. Despite declining linear ratings, broadcast…
Pedestrians in New York may have noticed a startling sight while walking the streets yesterday. Installations made to resemble children sleeping in small cages, wrapped in reflective blankets and accompanied by the message “#NoKidsInCages” were briefly installed around the city before being taken down by police. The installations combine the unsettling imagery resembling children wrapped…
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders’ presidential campaign is approaching digital advertising this time around in a whole new way compared to his 2016 strategy. A new ad targeting Iowa voters–released today on social media platforms like Facebook, Instagram and Twitter–is just one example of how the campaign has prioritized creating videos that are of “TV-quality,” said…
Soldier turned political hopeful MJ Hegar exploded onto the scene in 2018 with a video called “Doors” that set a new bar for high-impact storytelling in campaign ads. Running for the U.S. House in a deep-red Texas district against a veteran Republican lawmaker, Hegar succeeded in closing the seemingly impossible race to a narrow 3%…
Turning a government report into a work of literature is not an uncommon occurrence. There are many in print, ranging from sobering (The Warren Report on JFK’s assassination and the 9/11 Commission Report) to the more salacious (Ken Starr’s findings on the Bill Clinton/Monica Lewinsky affair). Creating a cover for these kinds of books, at…
Prior to the 2016 presidential election, a stiff, minimalist red hat with white lettering would equate to little more than an eccentric fashion choice. But in the years since, a camp emblazoned with “Make America Great Again” has become one of the most polarizing symbols in American politics–representing a vague Reagan Era-esque ambition to some,…
At first glance, the marketing industry appears strong as ever heading into 2019. Digital marketing roles have doubled in 2012, and ad agency jobs are nearing an all-time high for the first time in nearly 20 years. But despite the industry’s robust overall position, in-house marketing divisions and ad agencies are still grappling with the…
Political advertising underwent a dramatic evolution in the lead-up to the 2018 midterm elections, with emotionally potent narratives helping launch several newcomers onto the national stage. While not all these candidates were as successful as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, whose campaign video “The Courage to Change” helped propel her to an unexpected primary victory and then a…
On Wednesday, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) introduced legislation that could give the Federal Trade Commission authority to update the nation’s privacy laws for the internet era. The American Data Dissemination Act, as it’s called, would task the FTC to update the nation’s 1970s privacy laws. However, unlike online privacy bills introduced last year, Rubio’s…
Coca-Cola bottles have become well known in recent years for the wide variety of names found on their labels, and the brand has even empowered fans to order their own custom-printed names. Now a group of New York creatives is using that offering to spread awareness of a heartbreaking story from the U.S. border. The…
Google CEO Sundar Pichai defended the company’s data collection practices and insisted that the company’s algorithms in its search results were absent of political bias considerations, he told lawmakers on Tuesday in a House hearing. Pichai told lawmakers he was a “technology optimist … because I believe in people and their ability to use technology…
“What can a citizen do?” It’s a question that depends a lot on who’s asking it. A senator might use it to rally their base. A civics teacher might ask a class for a test. Or, it might be something asked in exasperation by anyone exhausted by the past two years of politics: what really…
As the dust settles on the 2018 midterm elections, a few things have come into focus. One is that while this was maybe not a fully blue wave (depends on which historical perspective you use as a benchmark), the Democrats harnessed voter anger against the current administration into a solid win by capturing the House…
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