The Hard Sell

[SOURCE: Broadcasting&Cable 2/6, AUTHOR: Kevin Downey]
Not all television ratings are equal. It may sound like a broken record, but when it comes to the prices that advertisers pay to reach ethnic viewers -- notably Hispanics, Asians and African-Americans -- the cost is often far less than it is for a comparably sized audience in the general market. What's surprising is that, while this cost disparity has been commonplace for years, it is growing more pronounced in some cases, even as the nation's Hispanics, African-Americans and Asians develop distinct media outlets and markets. Hispanics, for instance, now account for more than 14% of the population and 9% of disposable income, according to a study released in November by the Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies. But Spanish-language media accounted for only 2.9% of ad spending in the first nine months of 2005, based on data from ad-tracking firm TNS Media Intelligence.
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