(MIDDLETOWN, CT) November 1, 2018 - In partnership with the Center for Responsive Politics, the Wesleyan Media Project reports that although the proportion of dark money ads airing this year is not record-breaking, the number of dark money advertisements on television is at a four cycle high. As shown in Table 1, 243,652 dark money ads have aired in federal races from January 1 of the prior year through October 25, 2018. This represents 11 percent of airings, which is up from the 7 percent in 2016, but down slightly from 2012 and 2014 proportions. Table 1: Dark Money in…

10% of Dems Digital Ads Mention ACA and Republican Health Bills; Robert Mueller a non-Issue (MIDDLETOWN, CT) November 1, 2018 - The Wesleyan Media Project has previously reported on digital spending in federal races this cycle. In this report, we show the frequency of issue mentions in TV and Facebook ads for the general election nominees in the twelve most competitive Senate races. Almost 35 percent of the Facebook ads placed by Republican Senate candidates in 12 competitive contests mention Donald Trump, compared to 17 percent of the ads placed by those same candidates on television. Table 1 shows the…

Photo Gage Skidmore/Flickr Record-Breaking Number of Ads; More Democratic Dark Money (MIDDLETOWN, CT) October 30, 2018 - As we reach the final week of the 2018 midterm election, an analysis by the Wesleyan Media Project finds that television advertising in federal races is setting new records in volume—and in the volume of negative ads, thanks in part to the large number of competitive races across the country. While the proportion of negative advertising in the post-Labor Day general election period (Sept. 4–Oct. 25) is not actually record-breaking, this election season feels exceptionally negative to many viewers because the sheer number…