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Conventions, Great Debates, special programs meant at leas
LOS ANGELES AND CHICAGO coverage of Republican and Democratic Conventions involved fantastic expenses, probably cost nets and stations over $9,000,000 despite partial sponsorship of convention telecasts
GREAT DEBATES were a 'tv gift' that totaled nearll $2,000,000 and this figure does not include spot timj revenues that were lost by the stations who carried th| four historic Kennedy-Nixon meetings on the airwayl
part which tv has played in the Republican-Democratic campaigning of the last five months.
Preliminary analysis of A. C. Nielsen and other data indicates that at least 80' r and probably closer to 90% of the 65,000,000 expected to vote tomorrow will have gained their primary knowledge of candidates and issues from tv viewing.
A single one of the Great Debates, for example, was watched by an estimated 75,000,000 men, women and children.
By contrast, the seven famous Lincoln-Douglas debates of 1858 attracted, according to Carl Sandburg, a total of 78,500 people.
But the astronomical audience figures which tv achieved, and the wide comment which the Great Debates and convention coverage provoked in the press, have obscured what to sponsor is easily the most significant aspect of the industry's effort — the
voluntary contributions of hard cash which tv networks and stations have made to the cause of political understanding.
sponsor's estimate of a $20,000,000 cost to the industry has been arrived at by examining four separate factors.
1. Advertising revenues lost by the pre-emption of network time for unsponsored political telecasts.
2. Advertising revenues lost by the pre-emption of spot time for unsponsored political telecasts.
3. Net loss incurred by the difference between the costs and the sale price of commercially sponsored political telecasts (i.e. convention and election night coverage).
4. Special-out-of-pocket costs involved in setting up program, production, technical, and other facilities for campaign coverage.
Not included in the $20,000,000 figures are thousands of man hours of executive, program, production,
and other personnel time involved handling the expanded political schefl ules which every network and stati' has included.
Nor does the $20,000,000 total i elude the net loss in paid political at vertising which tv has incurred du ing the 1960 campaign.
The industry fight for the suspei sion of Section 315 has actual meant a drop in expenditures by tl Republicans and Democrats for spots and programs over comparab 1956 and 1952 figures. Tv has giv more free time and received less rev nue from the major parties.
sponsor's $20,000,000 estimal however, disregards the losses in pa political tv advertising, and conce trates only on the costs of the co; ventions, the Great Debates, elect Night coverage and the many sp cial programs scheduled by both nj works and stations during the fi^ month campaign period.
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7 NOVEMBER 19<