Do local teevee newscasts get paid to air stories (think promos) about "Sex & The City2"?

[Bozita]

This post was inspired by the most recent report showing the reporter viewing selected fashions at an upscale mall. She was visibly excited over wearing a pair of the "official" shoes of the film. (The designer proclaimed them as such.)

Every local newscast on every local station with a newsroom has contained one of those. It's been going on for at least three days now.

Do the film companies/distributors pay for this publicity?

[FiveGoodMen]

1. I'll bet the news you were watching and the studio that put out Sex 2 are owned by the same parent

company.

[SocialistLez]

2. It wouldn't surprise me.

I saw the first Sex and the City and liked it.
I won't be seeing the second one because of the bad reviews and I don't feel like forking over $7-9 bucks to see a movie.

[Jeffersons Ghost]

3. unless things in TV have recently changed the answer is no

[monmouth]

4. The reviews of this mess are horriffic...LOL. Being panned all over.

I believe I saw one review on HuffPo but don't see it right now.

[Lydia Leftcoast]

5. If the station and the movie studio and/or theater are owned by the same parent company, yes

Also, stations want to cut costs, so companies' (not just movie studios) prepare slick "feature stories" on their latest products or services, using a "reporter" who is actually hired by the company, and offer them to the TV stations as free filler. (Stupid TV stations, not charging them commercial rates...)

There are also audio "feature stories" that are marketed to radio stations. I used to answer phones as a volunteer (not a pledge volunteer, a weekly volunteer) for a non-commercial radio station, and we'd get at least one of those offers a week. Since the station was all music and had no other features except interviews with musicians, I felt free to say, "No, we're wise to your attempts to run free commercials."

[KharmaTrain]

6. "Promotional Considerations"...

If the station doesn't get money outright...a commercial buy that "runs" the schedule (meaning it airs throughout the day = nice coin)...then they've dumped a lot of free tickets or other merchandise on the station. They also play to the vanity of stations...who love to think of themselves as big stars and like being seen with real ones.

Local newscasts are full of these "non-traditional" revenue enhancers...food reviews, a "review" of a local business or that "ideal" vacation (Disney used to be notorious for using newscasts to promote...especially on ABC stations). Sure beats having to pay a real news reporter.

[Sisaruus]

7. I change the channel the minute a promo disguised as news is presented

The remote control gets used a lot in the second half of the news broadcasts.

I'm sure the tv station news directors are trembling now.

[JBoy]

8. They're no doubt given rights to run clips during the "news" segment.

The news stations see this as a win - free content that they can turn into "news" just by writing a few words for the anchors. No need to send reporters and crews into the field.

[underpants]

9. Not a watcher of the show but that movie looks like a bust

it will probably make a ton of money but it looks like it is a car wreck

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

10. I've seen local news stations run paid promotional material.

I don't know about movie adverts, but I've seen them run stuff for James Dobson's outfit.

[slampoet]

11. They got paid to air "There's a new Krispy Kreme" stories for a whole decade

[Berry Cool]

12. Don't forget, it's sweeps month.

Local TV stations drool to have an excuse to run more entertainment news items during sweeps because people like to watch them and the stations need the ratings. Movie studios are happy to oblige with prepared packages plugging their movies and ideas for how to build "news stories" around them at your locality. There is no need for them to pay anyone, because the stations gladly use what they offer to improve their news ratings.

[Mimosa]

13. They pay with the placement of commercials. n/t