Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders aired 206,528 ads. Not a single one was negative.
As Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders' fight for the Democratic nomination winds toward a close, the pair of candidates leaves behind them a surprisingly friendly primary — perhaps the most gracious ever, at least in terms advertisements. According to Kantar Media, of the 206,528 ad spots Clinton and Sanders aired between them this year, not a single one was determined by analysts to be "negative."
"In an open presidential primary, this is probably unprecedented," Kantar's senior vice president for political advertising Elizabeth Wilner told Bloomberg.
Donald Trump, by comparison, faced $62 million in attack ads during the primary season. Obama and Clinton both aired negative ads against each other back in 2008, too. However, Sanders doesn't believe in attack ads — and Clinton both didn't see Sanders as a big enough threat and risked alienating his supporters in a general election by airing her own ads against him.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The goodwill might not last much longer, however. Clinton has no such qualms holding back against Trump — her campaign has already produced an ad slamming her likely general election opponent for attacking Judge Gonzalo Curiel in a racist manner. And, of course, Trump has never exactly been one to hold back on how he really feels.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
Political cartoons for October 27Cartoons Monday's political cartoons include improving national monuments, the NBA gambling scandal, and the AI energy vampire
-
Donald Trump’s week in Asia: can he shift power away from China?Today's Big Question US president’s whirlwind week of diplomacy aims to bolster economic ties and de-escalate trade war with China
-
Trump vows new tariffs on Canada over Reagan adspeed read The ad that offended the president has Ronald Reagan explaining why import taxes hurt the economy
-
NY attorney general asks public for ICE raid footageSpeed Read Rep. Dan Goldman claims ICE wrongly detained four US citizens in the Canal Street raid and held them for a whole day without charges
-
Trump’s huge ballroom to replace razed East WingSpeed Read The White House’s east wing is being torn down amid ballroom construction
-
Trump expands boat strikes to Pacific, killing 5 moreSpeed Read The US military destroyed two more alleged drug smuggling boats in international waters
-
Trump demands millions from his administrationSpeed Read The president has requested $230 million in compensation from the Justice Department for previous federal investigations
-
Trump nominee in limbo after racist texts leakSpeed Read Paul Ingrassia lost Republican support following the exposure of past racist text messages
-
Trump begins East Wing demolition for ballroomspeed read The president’s new construction will cost $250 million
-
Appeals court clears Trump’s Portland troop deploymentSpeed Read A divided federal appeals court ruled that President Trump can send the National Guard to Portland
