According to a new survey released by The Pew Research Center, 11% of the country turns to radio for information about the 2016 presidential election. Pew surveyed 3,760 adults and 24% said they turn to cable news first. Cable TV was followed by local TV and social networking sites at 14%, news websites and apps came in at 13% and radio 11%. Network TV was below radio at 10%. Read more from Pew about this survey HERE
I should have prefaced my earlier remarks with: Audiences getting political info from radio? Besides the talkers – where? When? How often?
As a V/O-ho’ muhself, I have voiced so many spots for American political candidates. (Non-accented Midwestern approach.)
All, repeat: All of them were written like they were cobbled together by some of the brighter kids in grade 4.
Whether the copy is candidate-supplied or cooked up locally didn’t seem to make any difference.
Usually, but not always, the copy stressed “Values”. There was, again – almost always – the suggested implication that these “values” were “Christian values” No specificity or explanations were ever included.
Without getting into the efficacy of those “values”, suffice to say the spots came off as maudlin and patronizing.
If radio can’t come up with better copy than that, an explanation about the lack of the medium getting the business from the pols is not required.
Meanwhile, I was pleased to voice the national television spots for the Conservative party a few years ago. The difference was: I had a hand in the copywriting. They won. A different agency ran their campaign this year and was a fallback to what I reasoned (above). They lost. I take no credit, but I am in a position to comment.