Political Ad Spending to Hit $6B in 2016: Analyst

The 2016 elections could generate $6 billion in election-year ad spending, with 66%, or $4 billion going to television, according to a new report from a Wall Street analyst.

Marci Ryvicker of Wells Fargo forecast that digital will increase its share of political spending, but its gain will not come at the expense of television.

Digital’s share should go to about 11%, or $650 million, in 2016 from 6% in 2012, Ryvicker said. Most of those funds will come from budgets previously assigned to print.

“While every candidate will likely have a digital presence, presence is free -- don't confuse ‘interactions’ with ‘ad spend,’” Ryvicker said in her report.

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Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.