I am writing in response to the article in the SMDP regarding the cable TV ads being used in 2006 Santa Monica City Council election (“Attack on the airwaves,” Oct. 25, page 1) Although Kevin Herrera reported that “The TV spots mark a first in Santa Monica,”this is simply not true. When I ran for city council in 2004, I used cable TV ads for about 10 days right up to the day of election. They played on CNN, CNBC, ESPN, HGTV, Discover Channel, etc. The article also alludes to TV spots being very expensive, but my experience was the opposite. The cable company charges very low rates for political ads. I paid between $8 and $70 per spot.
I’m not trying to suggest I know how much is being spent on the current ads, but I spent only a couple thousand on my TV spots compared to $10,000 or more for a simple mailer. With today’s voters on heavy information overload, why add to landfills by printing more paper? It often just gets tossed out anyway. In my opinion, cable TV was a very cost-effective way to reach many voters. I only regret I didn’t use it earlier in my campaign, instead of spend-
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 1, 2006. Read the original PDF.