Perhaps signaling the end of what has been so far a sleepy mayoral race, candidates John Cooper and Carol Swain have purchased the first airtime of the summer.
Cooper, an at-large Metro Council member, spent more than $12,000 to run his first ad, titled “For All of Us,” on WKRN throughout the day. Swain, a former Vanderbilt professor, spent nearly $2,000 to run her ad, titled “Broke City,” also on WKRN, according to Federal Communications Commission filings.
Incumbent Mayor David Briley, who is seeking election to his first full term in office in the August Metro election, has yet to go on the air, despite
leading in fundraisingat both campaign-finance check-ins. A spokesperson says that
his first adwill go on the air later this week.
State Rep. John Ray Clemmons, another mayoral candidate, released a video last month, but has yet to put it on the air.
These advertising spends are paltry compared to 2015, when candidates including Charles Robert Bone, Bill Freeman, David Fox and Megan Barry spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on TV ads throughout the summer. Plus: No jingles just yet.
