Holidays Come Early for Pittsburgh Radio Stations

The holidays are still two months away.

But local TV and radio stations are likely already counting their cash hauls and begging mom to drive them to the mall.

The reason: Political ads.

oneBURGH has learned that more than $3.5 million has been spent in the Pittsburgh radio market this election cycle. That’s the equivalent of 875 thousand jugs of Turner’s Iced Tea. On TV, some speculate nearly $100 million has been spent locally. That’s 20 million bottles of Heinz Ketchup.

While the barrage of commercials has the rest of us testing the durability of our mute buttons, that kind of money can keep TV and radio stations afloat for the year. (It could also help oneBURGH throw the biggest picnic Pittsburgh has ever seen, but we digress.)

And who do the broadcasters have to thank for their windfalls? PACs and super PACs. You might know them as the quickly mumbled names at the end of nearly every political commercial: “Paid for by friends of the committee to elect so-and-so and blah, blah blah.”

See, while the campaigns of Donald Trump, Kamala Harris, Dave McCormick, Bob Casey, etc. are charged an average rate that is mandated by the FCC, PACs and super PACs are not. Because of this, radio stations (most of them in Pittsburgh are owned by Audacy and iHeartRadio, psst we still know it’s you Clear Channel) can and will quadruple the normal ad rates they charge PACs and super PACs.

And why wouldn’t they? As the local spending totals attest, these groups are more than willing to pay up. 

So, while some of your favorite radio stations switch over to Christmas music, their holiday has already come and gone. It’s enough to make the rest of us set up the Festivus Pole and start airing our grievances.