Chicago TV stations sell more than $15 million in political ads

July 28, 2006

In This Issue:
• Chicago TV stations sell more than $15 million in political ads
• Support Sunshine in Ethics
• Disclosure Reports Due Monday

Chicago TV stations sell more than $15 million in political ads
Gov. Blagojevich has spent over $5 million on TV ads in Chicago alone this year, most of it after the Primary. ICPR looked at the ad contracts for the largest TV stations in Chicago to find out who ran the most ads and how much they spent. All told, candidates have spent over $15 million on TV ads in Chicago this year, and the General Election is yet to come. Our June report, Don't Touch that Dial, has been updated through the end of the Governor's most recent wave of ads. For the details, click here.

Support Sunshine in Ethics
Journalists have noticed that there hasn't been a lot of news coming out of the Inspectors General and Ethics Commissions created by the 2003 Ethics Act. That's because the statute greatly limits what reports and findings can be made public. Even though the Inspectors General have received some 3,000 complaints and concluded over 1,000 investigations, the only reports that have been made public are two that were leaked to reporters this spring. Read Cindi Canary's letter to the editor and the proposed reform legislation.

Disclosure Reports Due Monday
Don't forget! Campaign disclosure reports for the first half of the year are due to be filed with the State Board of Elections by Monday, July 31. Watch the reports come in live on the Board's website, and check back for the updated Sunshine Database in a few weeks.