Viewers Are Paying Attention to Political Advertising: TVision

voting and politics
(Image credit: Joaquin Corbalan/istock/Getty Images)

Viewers might complain about the barrage of political commercials on the way as Election Day approaches, but they seem to pay attention to them.

A new study from TVision found that when political ads appear, viewers stay in the room 22% longer than when other types of ad appear.

TVision also said viewers' eyes stay on political ads 15% longer than ads for other products or services.

Overall, in terms of attention, political ads get a 38.7% score, while all other ads get a 37.4% score.

That would seem to be good news for candidates and PACs that are expected to spend $2.1 billion on linear TV and $300 million on CTV advertising.

Also: Scripps Leads New Station Group Aiming To Bring Political Ads to CTV

Another interesting finding is that folks who identify themselves as independents pay the most attention to political ads compared to other ads. 

Independents pay the most attention to the political ads they see on CNN at 42.1%. Independents’ attention registers 39.2% on both Fox News and MSNBC. 

Republicans pay the most attention to political ads on Fox News. Democrats pay the most attention to political ads on MSNBC, the study found.

On CTV,  the youngest voting-age viewers pay considerably more attention to political ads than other ads. Among 18 to 24 year olds attention increases 12% for political ads, the biggest jump for any demo other than those 55 and up. 

TVision reviewed viewer engagement with TV advertising on Linear and CTV for people 18 years of age and up between January 1 and August 29, 2022. TVision’s panel includes approximately 13,000 viewers across the United States and they self-report political affiliation. ■

Jon Lafayette

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.