Philly 2014 Political Ad Trends Viewer


Trends Viewer: Philly Political Media Watch Project

Welcome to the interactive Trends Viewer tool designed to allow you to explore the data underlying the Philly Political Media Watch Project of the Internet Archive's TV News Archive! From September 1, 2014 through the election of November 4, 2014, 7 television stations in the Philadelphia market were monitored to identify all politically-related advertisements. In all, 74 distinct political advertisements were identified which collectively aired 13,675 times during the 65 day monitoring period. Each advertisement was assessed for time devoted to functional content, using the approach elaborated by William Benoit, Ph.D., most recently in his 2014 book, A Functional Analysis of Political Television Advertisements. Archive staff scored each ad along the dimensions of "Acclaim" (positive comments about candidate), "Attack" (negative comments about opposing candidate), and "Defend" (defending candidate against attacks by opposing candidate), along with typing up a transcript of its spoken content. A similar approach was taken by a team at the University of Delaware's Center for Community Research and Service lead by Associate Professor Danilo Yanich, in their study, Political Ads & Local TV News - Philly 2014.

Note that you will find some oddities in the data due to the way in which the human coding cataloged the advertisements. Each ad was categorized with the name of the primary candidate discussed, meaning that an attack ad run by one candidate against another will be cataloged under the second one's name, even if the other half of the advertisement lauds the candidate running the ad. This will yield nuanced results, such as comparing the ads focusing on Aimee Belgard vs those sponsored on her behalf.

This tool allows you to interactively explore and visualize the resulting trends (the raw datasets are also available for download). Using the form below, you can select any pair of candidates, parties, races, status, win/lost, sponsor, sponsor type, television channel, or even keywords found in the transcripts, or any combination therein, to compare their respective trends during the 2014 election cycle. If you specify multiple options they will be combined together. For example, you can compare ads focusing on Tom Corbett that were paid by Tom Corbett for Governor vs those paid for by Tom Wolf for Governor. Or, compare all ads mentioning the two candidates from any sponsor. Or ads focusing on candidates that ultimately won vs lost. Or, compare the ads run by the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers vs those run by the House Majority PAC. Or, those mentioning "school" vs "job" in the transcript of the ad. Or, simply, view the overall trends for all 13,675 advertisement airings.

Search #1

Use the dropdowns below to select your first query.
You can select multiple options and they will be combined together.

Focal Candidate:
Focal Candidate Party:
Focal Candidate Status:
Focal Race:
Focal Candidate Outcome:
Ad Sponsor:
Ad Sponsor Type:
Television Channel:
Transcript Keyword:


Search #2

Use the dropdowns below to select your second query.
You can select multiple options and they will be combined together.

Focal Candidate:
Focal Candidate Party:
Focal Candidate Status:
Focal Race:
Focal Candidate Outcome:
Ad Sponsor:
Ad Sponsor Type:
Television Channel:
Transcript Keyword:

Select All Advertisements:





Summary Statistics

The four charts below offer a summary of overall trends. See the description under each graph for more detail on what it shows.



Total number of airings of all ads matching your queries

Total airtime of advertisements in minutes, broken down by the functional type expressed: Acclaim (praising the candidate), Attack (attacking the other candidate), or Defend (countering attacks made by the other candidate)



Total airtime (in minutes) of advertisements, broken down by television channel, making it possible to see where advertising time was focused and any differences in the kinds of ads run on each channel. Airtime is further broken down by the functional type expressed: Acclaim (praising the candidate), Attack (attacking the other candidate), or Defend (countering attacks made by the other candidate).



Total airtime (in minutes) of advertisements, broken down by the primary candidate focused on by the ad. An ad may mention multiple candidates, but it is cataloged under the focal candidate that was mentioned the most. Airtime is further broken down by the functional type expressed: Acclaim (praising the candidate), Attack (attacking the other candidate), or Defend (countering attacks made by the other candidate).



Total airtime (in minutes) of advertisements, broken down by the organization paying for the ad, making it possible to see who is paying for ads for/against a given candidate, etc. Airtime is further broken down by the functional type expressed: Acclaim (praising the candidate), Attack (attacking the other candidate), or Defend (countering attacks made by the other candidate).



Total airtime (in minutes) of advertising each candidate ran in shows starting during each hour, making it easy to see what times of day they targeted most heavily



Daily Timeline

The timeline below summarizes the total airtime of advertisements by day over the entire 65 day period, with results for "school" shown to the left of the center line and results for "job" shown to the right. Airtime is further broken down by the functional type expressed: Acclaim (praising the candidate), Attack (attacking the other candidate), or Defend (countering attacks made by the other candidate).




Ad Listing

The thumbnails below show all of the distinct advertisements matching your queries, ordered by how many times each was aired (see the number below each thumbnail). Click on any thumbnail to view a sample airing of that advertisement.

Advertisements Featuring "school"

Times Aired: 357
Times Aired: 290
Times Aired: 270
Times Aired: 266
Times Aired: 260
Times Aired: 188
Times Aired: 178
Times Aired: 159
Times Aired: 153
Times Aired: 135
Times Aired: 82
Times Aired: 71
Times Aired: 51
Times Aired: 41
Times Aired: 9

Advertisements Featuring "job"

Times Aired: 515
Times Aired: 500
Times Aired: 371
Times Aired: 357
Times Aired: 307
Times Aired: 293
Times Aired: 268
Times Aired: 246
Times Aired: 178
Times Aired: 153
Times Aired: 129
Times Aired: 114
Times Aired: 111
Times Aired: 87
Times Aired: 85
Times Aired: 85
Times Aired: 71
Times Aired: 58
Times Aired: 51
Times Aired: 46
Times Aired: 41
Times Aired: 32
Times Aired: 31
Times Aired: 15
Times Aired: 8
Times Aired: 3



Show Listing

The specific television shows that a candidate runs their ads during offers powerful insights into the target demographics being sought by each candidate. The tables below summarize the total number of airings of ads matching your criteria that were run during each television show over the 65 day period. For selected news programming, a preview link is provided to view a sample airing of one of the advertisements that ran during that show.

All Shows Featuring "school"

RankShowAiringsPreview
1Action News166View
2Good Day Philadelphia128View
3Today126View
4Good Morning America104View
5Eyewitness News at 687View
6Fox 29 News at 1075View
7NBC 10 News at 6pm67View
8NBC 10 News at 11p64View
9Eyewitness News at 1162View
10Action News at Ten on PHL1754View
11Family Feud54
12Action News 600 PM52View
13Eyewitness News at 552View
14CBS This Morning48View
15Fox 29 Morning News at 6a47View
16The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon46
17NBC 10 News at 5pm45View
18Jeopardy39
19NBC 10 News at 4pm36View
20Wheel of Fortune35
21NBC 10 News Today at 600a34View
22FOX 29 News at Five34View
23Late Show With David Letterman34
24Modern Family33
25Good Day Philadelphia at 933View
26Dr. Phil32
27The Ellen DeGeneres Show30
28Judge Judy29
29Action News 530 PM29View
30Extra26
31The Insider21
32Access Hollywood20
33Talk Philly18
34NBC 10 News Today at 11a16View
35Eyewitness News at 8am16View
36Judge Mathis16
37CBS This Morning Saturday16View
38Live With Kelly and Michael15
39Eyewitness News at 7am15View
40Action News at 4pm15View
41NBC 10 News at 9am15View
42Rachael Ray15
43Lets Make a Deal14
44The Big Bang Theory14
45NBC 10 News Today at 500a14View
46Jimmy Kimmel Live13
47The Price Is Right13
48Action News Weekend 7AM13View
49NBC 10 News Today at 430a12View
50NBC Nightly News12View
51The Meredith Vieira Show12
52Fox 29 News at 6PM12View
53Action News Weekend12View
54Despierta America12
55Early Today11View
56College Football11
57Eyewitness News at 53011View
58The Doctors10
59NBC 10 News Today at 530a10View
60Steve Harvey10
61CBS News Sunday Morning9View
62The Good Wife9
63In Depth With Graham Bensinger9
64Action News 500 PM9View
65Entertainment Tonight9
66Eyewitness News on the CW Philly8View
67The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson8
68Days of our Lives8
69NFL Football8
70Dancing With the Stars7
71The Voice7
72The Peoples Court6
73Law Order Special Victims Unit6
74Two and a Half Men6
75Nightline6View
76Face the Nation6View
77NBC 10 News at 530a6View
78Fox 29 Morning News at 4a6View
79Inside the Eagles6
80Shark Tank6
81NBC 10 News at 6am6View
82Animation Domination High-Def6
83Action News Weekend 6AM5View
84Football Night in America5
85Noticias 655View
86Noticiero 65 Edicion Nocturna5View
87Noticiero Univision5View
88Primer Impacto5View
89The Blacklist5
9060 Minutes5View
91Madam Secretary5
92NBC 10 News at 7am5View
93Americas Got Talent4
94The View4
95Fox29 Sports Show4
96Fox Sports Sunday4
97Eyewitness News at 6am4View
98Castle4
99The Young and the Restless4
100Blue Bloods4
101The Queen Latifah Show4
102NCIS New Orleans3
103Late Night With Seth Meyers3
104Eyewitness News Sunday3View
105Fox 29 Morning News at 5a3View
106Fox29 Weekend3
107NBC 10 News at 10am3View
108FOX News Sunday With Chris Wallace3View
109TMZ Live3
110Paid Programming3
111Anger Management3
112Who Wants to Be a Millionaire3
113CBS Evening News With Scott Pelley3View
114NFL Thursday Night Kickoff3
115Eye Opener3
116CSI Crime Scene Investigation3
117The Dr. Oz Show3
118Seinfeld3
119Sports Zone3
120La Gata3
121NBC 10 High School Blitz3
122Scandal3
123Dateline NBC3View
124The Simpsons2
125Under the Dome2
12648 Hours2
127Hoy2
128The Bold and the Beautiful2
129Eyewitness News at 430am2View
130Inside Edition2
131Action News at 1130 P2View
132The Talk2
133Person of Interest2
134Dish Nation2
135Meet the Press2View
136The Chew2
137The Biggest Loser2
138NBC 10 News2View
139ABC World News Tonight With David Muir2View
140Football Night in Philly2
141Election 2014 In Focus2
142Fox 29 Game Day Live2
143Action News 530 AM2View
144Inside Story2View
145Como Dice el Dicho2
146Saturday Night Live2
147White Collar2
148The Better Show1
149Fox29 Sports Sunday1
150NASCAR Racing1
151The Amazing Race1
152Eagles Game Day Kickoff1
153The Wendy Williams Show1
154The NFL Today1
155Open House1
156La Malquerida1
157FOX NFL Sunday1
158Greys Anatomy1
159Daytime Jeopardy1
160Chicago Fire1
161Family Guy1
162PHL17s In Focus1
163Breakfast with the Candidates1
164Chasing1
165The Mysteries of Laura1
166The Mass1
167Bones1
168ABC World News Tonight1View
169NFL Kickoff 20141
170Comics Unleashed With Byron Allen1
171Extant1
172Quiero Amarte1
173Glee1
174The Office1
175Hot Bench1
176General Hospital1
177Chicago PD1
178On the Money1
179The OT1
18020/201
181NBC 10 News at 5am1View
182Bachelor in Paradise1
183How to Get Away With Murder1
184American Ninja Warrior1
185The Secret Lives of Pets With Hoda Kotb1

All Shows Featuring "job"

RankShowAiringsPreview
1Action News271View
2Good Day Philadelphia196View
3Today177View
4Eyewitness News at 6154View
5Good Morning America138View
6Action News at Ten on PHL17117View
7Eyewitness News at 5110View
8Eyewitness News at 1199View
9NBC 10 News at 5pm98View
10NBC 10 News at 6pm88View
11Fox 29 News at 1085View
12Jeopardy80
13NBC 10 News at 11p79View
14CBS This Morning75View
15Dr. Phil70
16Late Show With David Letterman68
17Judge Judy66
18Wheel of Fortune65
19The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon65
20NBC 10 News at 4pm63View
21Fox 29 Morning News at 6a62View
22Good Day Philadelphia at 962View
23The Ellen DeGeneres Show57
24Action News 600 PM56View
25Live With Kelly and Michael55
26Action News 530 PM48View
27FOX 29 News at Five48View
28NBC 10 News Today at 600a46View
29Access Hollywood44
30Action News at 4pm43View
31Rachael Ray43
32Talk Philly42
33The Insider41
34Extra37
35NBC Nightly News36View
36NBC 10 News Today at 11a33View
37Entertainment Tonight33
38The Doctors32
39Family Feud32
40Action News 500 PM32View
41Eyewitness News at 53030View
42Steve Harvey29
43Modern Family27
44The Late Late Show With Craig Ferguson27
45Fox29 Weekend26
46Fox 29 News at 6PM25View
47The Dr. Oz Show22
48Jimmy Kimmel Live21
49Lets Make a Deal21
50The Meredith Vieira Show20
51Law Order Special Victims Unit19
52The Price Is Right19
53The Talk19
54Action News Weekend19View
55Judge Mathis18
56CBS Evening News With Scott Pelley18View
57The Big Bang Theory18
58The View16
59The Peoples Court16
60NBC 10 News Today at 500a16View
61ABC World News Tonight With David Muir15View
62Hot Bench15
63NBC 10 News at 9am15View
64NBC 10 News Today at 530a14View
65Eyewitness News at 7am14View
66Chasing14
67NBC 10 News at 6am14View
68Fox 29 Morning News at 5a13View
69NBC 10 News Today at 430a13View
70College Football13
71Inside Edition12
72Despierta America12
73Eyewitness News at 430am11View
74Early Today11View
75Eyewitness News on the CW Philly11View
76The Queen Latifah Show11
77Dish Nation11
78CBS News Sunday Morning11View
79The Voice11
80Eyewitness News at 8am10View
81The Young and the Restless10
82NBC 10 News at 530a10View
83The Good Wife10
84Action News Weekend 7AM10View
85CBS This Morning Saturday9View
86CSI Crime Scene Investigation9
87Football Night in America8
88Mike Molly8
89Face the Nation8View
90Fox Sports Sunday7
91TMZ Live7
92Nightline7View
93Anger Management7
94Fox 29 Morning News at 4a7View
95The Simpsons6
96NBC 10 News at 10am6View
97Eyewitness News at 6am6View
98Two and a Half Men6
99Meet the Press6View
100NFL Football6
101Blue Bloods6
102Inside the Eagles6
103Dancing With the Stars6
104Saturday Night Live6
105Madam Secretary6
10648 Hours5
107Stalker5
108Person of Interest5
109Days of our Lives5
110Noticias 655View
111Who Wants to Be a Millionaire5
112In Depth With Graham Bensinger5
113Noticiero 65 Edicion Nocturna5View
114Fox 29 Game Day Live5
115Noticiero Univision5View
116Election 2014 In Focus5
117Primer Impacto5View
118The Wendy Williams Show4
119The Bold and the Beautiful4
120Late Night With Seth Meyers4
121FOX News Sunday With Chris Wallace4View
122Paid Programming4
123Daytime Jeopardy4
124Castle4
125TMZ4
126The Mysteries of Laura4
127The Office4
128Action News 530 AM4View
129Inside Story4View
130The Blacklist4
131Dateline NBC4View
132Hawaii Five-04
13360 Minutes4View
134Animation Domination High-Def4
135NBC 10 News at 7am4View
136Eagles Game Day Kickoff3
137NCIS New Orleans3
138Action News Weekend 6AM3View
139This Week With George Stephanopoulos3View
140ABC World News Now3View
141World Series Pregame3
142Bones3
143General Hospital3
144La Gata3
145Sports Zone3
146The Chew3
147Chicago PD3
148NBC 10 News at 5am3View
149Hoy2
150The Better Show2
151Fox29 Sports Show2
152Gracepoint2
153FOX NFL Sunday2
154FOX29 News at 112View
155Parenthood2
156The NFL Today2
157Chicago Fire2
158Scorpion2
159Last Call With Carson Daly2
160Football Night in Philly2
161Survivor2
162The King of Queens2
163Shark Tank2
164NBC 10 High School Blitz2
165On the Money2
166White Collar2
167OK TV2
168Como Dice el Dicho2
169Storm Stories1
170Hells Kitchen1
171Eyewitness News Sunday1View
172Forever1
173NCIS Los Angeles1
174How I Met Your Mother1
175A to Z1
176Red Band Society1
177Americas Got Talent1
178Countdown to the CMA Awards 15 Songs That Changed Country Music1
179Motorcycle Racing1
180La Malquerida1
181Jerry Springer1
182Philly Pheud1
183Constantine1
184Maury1
185ABC World News Tonight1View
186The Walking Dead1
187Comics Unleashed With Byron Allen1
188FOX 29 News Special1View
189World of X Games1
190The Mass1
191Seinfeld1
192NBC 10 News1View
193Supreme Justice With Judge Karen Mills1
194Celebrity Name Game1
195Quiero Amarte1
196Glee1
197Eagles Game Plan1
198NFL Postgame1
199The Biggest Loser1
2002014 Breeders Cup1
201Scandal1
202Inside Edition Weekend1
203Healthy Meals in Minutes1
204How to Get Away With Murder1
205Criminal Minds1
206Cougar Town1




The Philly Political Media Watch Project

See more information about this project.