Broadcast still likely to rule in 2012, but advanced ads could make cable attractive

Presidential Advisor David Axelrod and former Republican National Committee chairman Ed Gillespie may have been talking to a cable industry audience, but they used the The Cable Show stage to argue for the dominance of broadcast, especially local TV, in election ad spending.

While it may seem that cable provides the necessary targeting for election campaign messages, local television is "still the nuclear weapon," Axelrod said. "I still think broadcast's is going to get the lion's share," he said, noting that 68% of media spending went to stations in battleground markets in 2008. "It isn't always terribly efficient, but you hit a lot of people in that market and that market may be pivotal to the election." Gillespie agreed. "Independents, they're making decisions on large, national issues," he said. "The national ad campaign still going to be the most resonant."