Hold On, It’s Coming!: New Election Money Could Newly Fund Media

The Supremes’ decision to allow unfettered commercial political speech could be a bonanza….for media companies. Commercial influencers — that would be corporations, and to a lesser degree, big labor — want to reach likely voters, and news media is a great way to find them. Consider that broadcasters’ incremental fortunes always rise with election years, with newspapers seeing some, but lesser impact. Now, think tablets, think next-gen media, where political storytelling — everything from 30-second “spots” to 30-minute videos — are enabled online, on phone and on tablet. Given the 2010 election coming at us quickly, this is a revolution all news media companies should get ready to cash in on. The Politicos come first to mind; reaching the politically influential is its core business, but everyone from the Times and Journal to local dailies and upstarts like MinnPost and the Texas Tribune could cash in.