Modern political campaigns rely heavily on various media to get their message to the electorate. The success of a campaign depends in part upon how a candidate is covered in the media and how voters respond to this coverage. The current contest between Erskine Bowles (D) and Richard Burr (R) for North Carolina’s vacant seat in the United States Senate is no different. Each candidate will strive to reach voters through television, radio, and print media. The purpose of this web page is to examine the challenges and opportunities that North Carolina’s media markets and geography pose to each campaign.
The geography of a race’s district and the media markets within that region must be taken into consideration for a campaign to be effective. Campaign managers realize that “the most important matters are a district’s size, density, and location” (Shea 36). Consequently, if the area that a candidate has to cover is vast, campaign organizers must give special consideration to methods of travel. If there are geographical hazards preventing likely voters from reaching the polls, it would be wise to assist these voters. If citizens in a specific area feel particularly strongly about a certain issue, political ads highlighting the candidate’s strength (or his opponent’s weakness) on that issue will likely inundate that media market (Shea).With a breadth of 503 miles, North Carolina is a large campaign district (Encarta). The size of this campaign district means the candidates cannot meet everyone, increasing the need for good statewide organization. So far, the two candidates have been stumping from apple festivals in Hendersonville to barbecues in Pink Hill in an attempt to address the variety of issues arising from North Carolina’s unique location, such as the environment in the mountains, textiles in the piedmont and agriculture in the coastal plain (www.hendersonvillenews.com www.charlotteobserver.com www.burr2004.com www.bowles2004.com). Despite their best efforts, however, the distance between campaign stops (and voters), means that candidates will be forced to rely on news reports and advertisements to get their message out. Since they cannot shake every hand and kiss every baby in North Carolina, each campaign will continue to put out radio and television ads. Likely to see the highest levels of activity on the airwaves are the Charlotte and Raleigh-Durham media markets. These are the two biggest media markets in North Carolina and the population density of the areas makes it easier to reach more people (Broadcasting and Cable Yearbook). The internet is another tool used by campaigns not only to inform voters, but to raise money as well. Campaign web sites are especially useful for reaching voters that seem to slip through the cracks in media markets that are too small or expensive for advertising.
Created: 9-9-04
Last updated: 9-10-04
Davidson College
Dr. Sellers' Politics 318 class