A little bit more than two years ago (jeez, was it really that long?), I mused that in the 2008 primaries, which got a very early start, it might make sense for a well-heeled candidate to take out a Super Bowl ad.
Turns out, you'd get more bang for your buck should you attempt a stunt like that if you're a Republican, because NFL viewers, like most viewers of major sports, skew noticeably to the GOP. The exception is NBA, whose viewers skew significantly Democratic, although viewership is not nearly as high. So look for Mitt Romney to jump-start his campaign in 2012 that way.
It sort of makes sense that the best value for your sports advertising dollar (if you're a Republican) is for golf -- its viewers are the most conservative and the likeliest to vote. Almost certainly income is the driver there. But yes, I've noticed that Democrats like golf, too -- but maybe they're more likely to spend a Sunday afternoon playing golf rather than watching it on TV.
What I can't figure out is how the NBA can attract reasonably high-propensity voters who tend to vote Democratic as viewers, but college basketball attracts a similar number of higher-propensity Republican voters. That doesn't make sense.
March 31, 2010
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The one that surprised me was the WWE. It's one of those things that's far more popular in Red America than Blue America and has a stronger blue than white collar following in Red America. I guess it's a factor of the youth demographics and substantial Hispanic fan base.
The main problem I have with the poll is that sports are followed mainly by men and men trend Republican, so it's no real surprise. Except the NBA. That is kind of a headscratcher, except that I guess it's particularly popular in the northeast. Why not NCAA basketball? My guess would be that college sports in general is bigger in Red States than Blue States.
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