No Ad Windfall Results From Battle Over Court Nomination

0

What happened to the much-anticipated media battle over President Bush’s choice for the Supreme Court? Well, so far nothing.


The nomination of John Roberts to replace Sandra Day O’Connor falls far short of an air war, according to a study by Nielsen Media Research and the University of Wisconsin Advertising Project.


In L.A., television viewers can be forgiven for not even knowing that a battle was afoot. Only three ads have run nationally and just one of those in the L.A. market: a spot titled “Brilliant,” which was produced by the conservative, pro-Roberts advocacy group Progress for America Inc.


A controversial ad opposing Roberts’ nomination, titled “Speaking Out” and produced by the liberal NARAL Pro-Choice America, did not run in Los Angeles (it has been pulled). And Progress for America’s response to the NARAL ad, titled “How Low,” also did not materialize locally.


It’s still early, of course. Senate hearings on the Roberts’ nomination are first scheduled for next month. But there is little evidence that any fireworks are in store disappointing news for local television outlets and cable networks that would have benefited from advertising on both sides.


The state political scene hasn’t been ad-rich either. The initiatives on the California ballot in November backed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger have spurred little action, although ad spending for and against those measures will likely pick up in the fall.



Satellite Plans


Starwin Media Holdings Inc. is a small company with big ambitions: to bridge American and Chinese cultures with around-the-clock satellite programming to 500 million households in the United States, China and other countries.


The Los Angeles-based public company plans to launch its own satellite network later this year with both home-grown programming produced in Los Angeles and shows produced by other networks in Asia.


Starwin was formed in May with the merger of Starwin Media Group and America Time East Media Group, which publishes several newspapers and a magazine in Hong Kong. It trades over the counter.


Earlier this month, Starwin announced that it had lined up $20 million from several unnamed investors in Europe, Asia and the United States well short of the dollars generally needed to launch a bona fide satellite network.


Still, Starwin is building Los Angeles production facilities and working out partnerships with 58 Asian networks whose programming would be carried on the satellite feeds. Monthly subscription fees will range from $19.99 to $29.99.


Starwin President Wendyfer Zhong said the company eventually hopes to compete with DirecTV Group Inc. and EchoStar Communications Corp. in worldwide reach, but to do so in the niche of Asian-language programming. “We have already laid the foundation,” Zhong said.



Fast Times


Harried commuters long have had books on tape to take the place of the written word in their driving-full schedules. Now, the Los Angeles Times is taking steps to make some of its articles available in much the same format.


The Times recently introduced a “podcasting” function to its Web site, allowing users to download audio versions of some stories and listen to them on the go. Several L.A. radio stations have offered non-musical programming via podcasts for the past several months and report that the feature is gaining in popularity.


The Times’ Web site, latimes.com, now carries podcasts of several of travel columnist Jane Engle’s Travel Insider series, as well as recordings of the front-page Column One feature. The Column One pieces are read by Bill Lagatutta of CBS News, rather than the reporter.


Rob Barrett, head of the Times’ interactive division, said in an e-mail that the newspaper wants to expand its audio offerings in the future. The paper does not have data on how many people have downloaded its podcasts so far.



Bagged It


Hoover may be the best-known brand in vacuuming, but executives at the Maytag Corp. division have turned to the L.A. office of an advertising agency to buff up its image.


The Los Angeles office of TBWAChiatDay, which is owned by Omnicon Group Inc., has been awarded a $25 million creative account for Hoover. The Chicago office of the ad agency DDB, also owned by Omnicom, was the runner-up.


Hoover’s decision to switch its advertising account to TBWAChiatDay from Chicago-based Element 79 Partners, also an Omnicom company, comes as the vacuum manufacturer faces tougher competition from the upstart British vacuum manufacturer Dyson Inc., which is No. 2 in U.S. sales and gaining rapidly.



*Staff reporter James Nash can be reached at (323) 549-5225, ext. 230, or at

[email protected]

.

No posts to display