More on Pay for Play
30 Jul 2008
I was in Vegas last week doing a workshop, when I tuned into the local morning show on KVVU and noticed two McDonald’s iced coffee cups on the news desk in front of the anchors. Now, it’s not unusual to see coffee cups on the set, but this was a first. PR gal that I am, I also couldn’t help but notice that the McDonald’s logos were facing the camera.
So, it came as no surprise today to see a story in AdAge that focused on that particular broadcast. As it turns out, the coffee was a paid placement. The talent didn’t discuss them or sip them, but they sat there for the entire broadcast. The station, owned by Meredith, is one of a few that are experimenting with this type of advertising.
“Advertisers look at it as an opportunity to have some visibility on their product and not get caught up in a traditional commercial break,” said Paul Karpowicz, president of the Broadcast Group at Meredith Corp. rossing the line because it is in a news broadcast, rather than in an entertainment format (where this is a common practice).
The question is: does this type of placement carry the imprimatur of the news outlet, lending a product greater credibility?
I don’t think so. I think most savvy viewers will see it for what it is. Moreover, there is less and less hard news…most news programs are moving to an info-tainment format, especially local morning news programs like the one on KVVU.
What concerns me, however, is what happens when Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts have a legitimate news announcement. Will it get play, or will it be relegated to the back burner because of a paid sponsorship deal with a key competitor? The AdAge article noted that:
Should a story about McDonald’s or the fast-food industry come up when the chain’s coffee is on screen, he said, the station would cover it “vigorously and aggressively.” What about the coffee? It’d be taken “off the set, just as we remove the commercials for airlines” when an air disaster strikes.
One would hope so, but who’s going to police it? Moreover, as we move into these new relationships, who’s going to write the rules?
“And as we see more and more of these things it’s going to be important that producers of these shows are transparent about what is an endorsement and what’s actually news,” said Fred Cook, CEO of Interpublic Group’s Golin Harris, which works for McDonald’s but had no role in the coffee placement.
To their credit, KVVU, disclosed the McDonald’s placement an on-air announcement as well as via on-screen graphics. The question I always ask though, is would my grandmother understand that this is an advertisement, or would she think McDonald’s coffee is the choice of her local news crew. Probably the latter.
