Money and ads in the 2012 election

Hour 1

The 2012 election was the most expensive in history and by a wide margin.  At a cost of $6 billion, this year’s federal campaigns spent $700 million more than the second most expensive election in history, according to a new report by the nonpartisan Center for Responsive Politics.  This estimate includes spending on the presidential, Senate and House campaigns, and by outside groups like super PACS and advocacy organizations now freed to spend limitless amounts with the Citizens United ruling. A bulk of the money went to political ads particularly in battleground states and many of them were negative. So how much did the money matter in this election?  And are political ads really the most effective was at reaching and persuading voters?   We’ll talk to ROBIN KOLODNY, an associate professor of political science at Temple University, and DIANA MUTZ, a Professor of Political Science and Communication a the University of Pennsylvania about campaign spending, political advertising and the election.

Listen:
[audio: 110812_100630.mp3]

AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster