Certainly there will be some companies, somewhere, who will step in and take up the available inventory … but as the New York Times reported on Friday, some of the larger brand advertisers have found the heat in Glenn Beck’s kitchen a little too hot and have pulled their advertising following the right-wing commentator’s comments about President Obama late last month.
Con Agra, Geico, Progressive and Proctor & Gamble all pulled ads – or shifted ad spending on FOX following the controversial remarks. Con Agra went as far as to issue a statement on Beck’s statements:
“We are firmly committed to diversity, and we would like to prevent the potential perception that advertising during this program was an endorsement of the viewpoints shared.”
Other advertisers kept their buys on FOX but distanced themselves from Mr. Beck’s show in particular. According to the article in the Times:
Other companies also said their spots had been scheduled during “Glenn Beck” by mistake. Ads for Procter & Gamble and S.C. Johnson appeared on a weekend repeat of Mr. Beck’s program by mistake, Fox acknowledged. Progressive said that its advertising order had specified “no Glenn Beck,” but Fox said it had bought a block of time with the channel that included Mr. Beck.
One of the issues raised by the article in the Times, however, centers on exactly how the attention of these advertisers – and their resulting media spending decisions – were brought to bear. Some credit has to go to ad mogul Donny Deutsch who also serves as a talk show host on FOX’s rival, MSNBC. Deutsch named names of brands who advertised on Beck’s show and rightly pointed out that corporate leaders often don’t know exactly where every ad dollar is going, so if angry consumer reached out to the companies who advertise on shows like Beck, those advertisers are likely to respond.
I found it more than just mildly humorous that Duetsch’s co-host couldn’t believe that the CEO’s of company’s like Chrysler and Campbell’s Soup don’t watch Beck’s show or have any idea where their ad dollars are spent. Deutsch, plowed on – condeming neither FOX or the sponsors but urging consumers to action.
