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A24 sports
Tuesday 20 November 2018
Democrats gear up for more digital spending in 2020

By BRIAN SLODYSKO because much of the pub-
Associated Press licly available data does
WASHINGTON (AP) — not differentiate between
One of the largest outside ads geared toward fund-
Democratic groups says raising and email list build-
ramped-up spending on ing versus ads aimed at
digital advertising played a winning over voters.
key role in midterm battle- Still, there are some broad-
ground races, offering a er trends that can be
lesson for potential presi- looked at.
dential contenders in 2020. After being outspent by
“You’re going to have to Republicans on Facebook
have an organization that in 2016, Democratic cam-
speaks directly to voters paigns and aligned out-
on their phones and their side groups had outspent
computers,” said Guy Ce- Republicans by more than
cil, chairman of Priorities a 2-to-1 margin on the plat-
USA, which spearheaded form as of last month, ac-
much of the party’s digi- cording to Facebook data
tal effort during the recent compiled by Democratic
midterm elections. “If the digital advertising firm Bully
presidential candidates do Pulpit International.
not have that as a central In this Nov. 6, 2018, file photo, Rep. Beto O’Rourke, makes his concession speech at his election “Facebook is the best plat-
part of their operation, they night party in El Paso, Texas, after being defeated by Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas. form for lead generation
will not win.” and digital fundraising,
Democrats are trying to mittee did not respond to cycle, but it doesn’t mean While hard numbers are which explains why Demo-
draw in new voters who are a request for comment. we’re entirely there yet,” difficult to come by, both crats are using it to channel
young, diverse and college However, there are signs said Cecil, whose group parties tend to spend the outrage of their base
educated. But at a time that the party is making im- spent roughly $50 million vastly less than is common into email addresses and
when cord-cutting millen- provements. overall on digital advertis- among corporate adver- donations,” said Michael
nials and their parents alike One bright spot for Demo- ing during the midterms. tising clients, where digital Duncan, a partner and
are spending more time crats was Priorities’ $6.3-mil- Though Democrats are spending averages around digital strategist at the Re-
online, the party remains lion digital effort that behind when it comes to 40 percent — more than publican firm Cavalry LLC.
disproportionately commit- supported Senator-elect online advertising, an aver- what is normally spent on “But when it comes to per-
ted to TV advertising, strat- Kyrsten Sinema’s win over sion to big spending on dig- TV. suasion (of undecided vot-
egists say, a dynamic that GOP Rep. Martha McSally ital is not entirely unique to It’s also hard to tell how the ers), video overall — and
could complicate those ef- in Arizona, a red state that them when compared to parties are spending their Google specifically — are
forts. has shown signs of trending the corporate world. online advertising dollars better platforms.” q
“Who is watching broad- toward Democrats.
cast television, who is The goal was driving up
watching Wheel of Fortune, overall turnout, with an ad- Big tech firms pledge training for
who is watching Jeopardy? ditional focus on several
They are older, white and key demographic groups, workers in Southeast Asia
they tend to not be Demo- including Latinos and
cratic voters,” said Tim Lim, whites without a college
who worked on the cam- degree. One set of slickly By KAWEEWIT KAEWJINDA ployment, even in manufacturing and ser-
paigns of former President produced “social pressure” Associated Press vice industries. Other companies pledging
Barack Obama and Hillary and motivational ads fea- BANGKOK (AP) — Microsoft, Google and training include Cisco, Grab, Lazada, Sea
Clinton and is now a fellow tured a diverse group of other major technology companies have Group and Tokopedia. Google leads the
at Georgetown’s Institute actors making the argu- promised to help provide training in digi- pack, with a pledge to train 3 million small-
of Politics. “By focusing so ment for why voting mat- tal skills for around 20 million people in to-medium-size enterprise employees
much on broadcast TV ters. Southeast Asia by 2020 to make sure the across ASEAN.
ads, we are missing crucial At the same time, a sepa- region’s burgeoning working-age popula- Ministers from countries such as Indone-
audiences to talk to.” rate prong of the cam- tion is a fit for the future job market. Up to sia, Thailand, Singapore and Vietnam also
But it’s not just about how paign was aimed at reduc- 28 million full-time jobs are subject to being pledged to join the initiative, Justin Wood,
much is spent online; it’s ing support for a Green displaced, according to a new estimate. the forum’s Asia Pacific head, said at a
about how that money is Party candidate who later The World Economic Forum think tank an- news conference. Wood said there are
spent. dropped out and endorsed nounced Monday its “ASEAN Digital Skills lots of exciting developments in Southeast
While Democrats have Sinema — a late-breaking Vision 2020” initiative to improve the tech- Asia surrounding the digital field — such as
been wildly successful at development that was nological capacity of the 10-member As- emerging e-commerce markets and ris-
using online advertising to highlighted in online ads. sociation of Southeast Asian Nations with ing internet penetration — which point to
rake in millions in donations As evidence the campaign training, funds for scholarships, internships a “vibrant economy emerging,” but the
and build email contact helped, Priorities noted in a and shaping the curricula of technology level of skills among workers in the digital
lists from their base, they’ve memo provided to The As- and computing courses, among other field “is not as good as it needs to be to
lagged behind Republi- sociated Press that turnout measures. The forum is best known for its capture this digital opportunity.”
cans when it comes to win- was up overall and Sine- annual meetings in Davos, Switzerland, of Naveen Menon, president for ASEAN of
ning over new or on-the- ma performed better than top business and political leaders. Cisco Systems, said the company’s re-
fence voters in the digital Democrats in the recent Southeast Asia is seeking to increase the search has shown that the increased
space, operatives in both past with the groups that digital skills of its workers as the shift to adoption of technology could displace
parties say. were targeted. greater use of robots and other automa- up to 28 million jobs in the region by 2020,
A spokeswoman for the “We have definitely closed tion threatens to rob those without tech- which would potentially require employ-
Democratic National Com- the gap from the previous nological savvy of opportunities for em- ees to be reskilled. q