CAMPAIGN FINANCE/DEMS/ELECTION/MEDIA/TRUMP AS PRESIDENT: “Spending on political advertising is projected to smash all-time records in 2020 as President Donald Trump and his Democratic opponent battle for control of the White House. Advertising Analytics, a political ad-tracking firm, expects the total cost of TV and digital ads for the next election to hit over $6 billion — a 57 percent increase over the total in last year’s hotly contested and expensive midterm elections, driven by a huge jump in digital video advertising. Over one-quarter of the $6 billion total, $1.6 billion, will be spent on digital video platforms, primarily Facebook and Google, while broadcast and cable TV stations will take in a whopping $4.4 billion — more than twice as much as Democrats and Republicans spent on TV in the last presidential elections. The projections reflect both the massive field of Democratic candidates vying to take on Trump as well as the brawl expected between Trump and the nominee, centering on a handful of key states. Advertising Analytics projects presidential general election spending in two swing states alone — Florida and Pennsylvania — to top $600 million combined.”
–Elena Schneider, “Trump’s general election brawl to drive record advertising,” Politico, July 2, 2019 5:03 am