Increased political ad spending contributed to a banner year for connected TV.

The influx of political content and ad dollars for the upcoming US presidential election will inevitably impact commercial advertisers on social media. Understanding the political ad cycle and consumer attitudes toward political content can help brands better reach their audiences.

How will social network ad spending and social usage change in 2020? And what will happen in hot-button areas, such as privacy, ad targeting and political advertising in social media? Here’s what we think lies ahead.

During presidential election years, the inflow of political ad dollars is a boon for TV media companies but has done little to fill the national ad spending void this year. Political TV spending is up more than 20% from 2016, per Amplifi’s Law.

eMarketer principal analyst at Insider Intelligence Nicole Perrin discusses whether major marketers will pull spending on social platforms because of brand safety and ethical concerns, what to make of Facebook's new advertiser “topic exclusion controls” test, and the types of content consumers prefer brands avoid the most. She then talks about tech companies introducing rules that favor their own business models, Facebook's relationship with political content, and whether Google is waving goodbye to Australia.

The coronavirus and political turmoil seen throughout the region in recent months will have negative implications for traditional media. Latin America will forego its largest local sporting event this summer, the 2020 Copa América. This, coupled with the postponement of the Summer Olympics, caused an exodus of ad dollars from traditional media formats like TV and OOH.

eMarketer forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom joins principal analysts at Insider Intelligence Mark Dolliver, Jeremy Goldman, and Nicole Perrin to discuss the US presidential election: media usage, effective advertising, and how big tech protected its integrity. They then talk about Apple's new privacy "nutrition labels," how a virtual reality headset can tell who you are from your movements within 5 minutes, and why The Trade Desk had such a good Q3.

eMarketer senior analyst Ross Benes, forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom and senior forecasting analyst at Insider Intelligence Oscar Orozco discuss the gradual return of sports audiences and how advertisers are viewing these marketing opportunities. They then talk about Facebook halting political ads after the election, Twitch selling inventory on Amazon's advertising platform, and out-of-home advertising in Q2.

Despite how consumers feel about it, politics remains a core part of the social media experience. This report explores how marketers should navigate social in the aftermath of the 2020 US presidential election.

As we have noted, it’s easier for the social platforms to rally resources against misleading information about a pandemic than it is to do so for political and socially debatable content. Defining “political” isn’t as simple as it sounds, and in this age of “alternative facts,” it’s nearly impossible to draw hard lines around political content without appearing partisan.

Short planning windows are also common in political ad campaigns where marketers require flexibility as they try to efficiently unload their budgets before Election Day. In recent months, political ad spending increased amid the buildup to the election, and CTV absorbed some of those dollars. Between April and September, CTV political ad spending at supply-side platform (SSP) SpotX increased ninefold.

eMarketer analyst Ross Benes, forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom and Business Insider Intelligence senior analyst Audrey Schomer discuss Netflix subscriber and revenue growth. Will we see a "Netflix with Ads" option? Does the streaming giant have an impending content problem? They then talk about political ad spending, whether tablets will make a comeback and Google asking advertisers for identification.

As campaigning for the 2020 presidential election heads into its final months, political ad spending will hit an all-time high. The highly partisan political environment is driving more Americans to donate money to their preferred candidates than in past election seasons, which in turn is funneling more money into advertising.

eMarketer forecasting analyst Eric Haggstrom and principal analyst Nicole Perrin talk about the US political ad spending landscape. How much money is being spent, where and why? They then discuss smartphone voting, consumer attitudes on privacy jargon and how Google can profit from government search warrants.

Growth in political ad spending is expected to slow dramatically during the 2019-2020 election cycle, according to Kantar Media, which predicts political campaigns for US federal office will spend $6 billion on paid media placements this year. But a greater share than ever will be directed toward digital channels.

Google and Facebook already control 60.8% of the total US digital ad market. And when it comes to the duopoly's share of digital political ad revenues, it has an even tighter grip, with a combined 77.6% this election cycle.

In Q2, political ad spending declined, which is expected since it is historically the lightest quarter of political ad spending in election years. We still expect political ad spending to pick up in the months leading up to the November election, but those ad dollars won’t be enough to offset TV’s advertising losses elsewhere.

US digital political ad spending will hit a record high for the 2019/2020 political cycle, crossing the $1 billion mark for the first time ($1.34 billion), as a larger number of highly engaged voters are expected to donate to the candidates of their choice in this year’s presidential race.

Political ad spend estimates have been revised higher amid an increasingly contentious election season. TV broadcasters will win many of these added dollars, moderating a longer-term downward revenue trend.

The role of political advertising in social media will be a key discussion topic in 2020—an easy prediction to make. Kantar Media expects that US digital political ad spending will reach $1.2 billion this year, and we believe the social platforms that continue accepting political advertisers will be major beneficiaries of that spending.

eMarketer principal analyst Debra Aho Williamson reviews Snapchat’s recent earnings. Also, vice president of content studio Paul Verna discusses the Brexit cloud looming over marketers, how local news has remained so trustworthy and increased ad spend on political videos.