Hollywood on the Campaign Trail

HOLLYWOOD ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL
[SOURCE: The Hollywood Reporter, AUTHOR: Brooks Boliek]
If campaign donations are any indication, Viacom is fond of Barack Obama, Comcast likes Hillary Clinton and Time Warner is sweet on both. Hollywood continues to be a major financier of the nation's presidential campaigns, handing out $2.4 million to White House hopefuls during this election cycle (Jan. 1-March 30), according to an analysis of campaign contributions by the Center for Responsive Politics. While Sen. Obama (D-IL) has made headlines with high-profile fundraisers in California, he trails Sen. Clinton (D-NY) by a substantial margin in the Hollywood money race. Sen Clinton raised $806,558 from the television, movie and music industries, compared with Sen Obama's $661,385, according to CRP's examination of the Federal Election Commission records of the 2008 cycle. The CRP calculates the data from political action committee contributions and contributions from individuals giving more than $200.
http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/hr/content_display/business/news/e3i24b...
* Financiers, Along with Lawyers, are Underwriting the Race for the White House, Watchdog Finds
http://www.opensecrets.org/pressreleases/2007/PresidentialMoney.4.18.asp

-- See also --
* Presidential campaigns seek to turn virtual-world interest into real-life votes
Democrat or Republican, the White House campaigns are using new online tools this year in an effort to attract supporters who they hope will give not only their votes, but their time and money to the effort. The technology is new, but not the political chase - candidates want to be where the voters are. And Americans today are spending their time online.
http://www.siliconvalley.com/latestheadlines/ci_5705638