There is a show currently being aired on TV that I am totally disgusted with. Rather than just change the channel, I would like to protest by boycotting the advertisers and send both the TV network and the advertisers letters informing them of why I won’t use their products.
I realize that this probably won’t make a difference in the whole grand scheme of things, but I feel it is necessary for me to do this.
Outside of watching the show and making notes of the commercials I see during that time, how can I find out what companies are sponsoring this specific TV show?
With a few notable exceptions, it’s been a long time since most TV shows have been “sponsored” in the sense of an advertiser having their name associated with a program. Usually, the advertisers and their agencies buy time slots, either for national advertising on the network, or local advertising on the local TV station. Sometimes they will request that their ads go in a specific show, but usually they buy “dayparts”, such as prime time, afternoons, late night, etc. depending on the demographic they want to target.
In many cases, the advertiser doesn’t even know that his commercial will be showing on a specific program until it airs.
Obviously, there are exceptions, such as the Super Bowl and most other sports programs, where advertisers pay a premium to target the audience that watches sports, but that’s the exception and not the rule.
In a past life, I had several clients who were the target of advertiser boycotts. The only problems were a) they didn’t sponsor that show; b) some of them didn’t advertise on television at all; d) they bought a block of commercials to run wherever the station had an opening (like FatBaldGuy said.)
Now, if you really want to make your voice heard, write a letter to your local station. Be intelligent and specific about what you find objectionable. Tell the station you not only won’t watch the show anymore, you won’t watch anything they show.
Local stations are a lot more responsive to individual viewers than either networks or show syndicators. And when local stations get enough complaints, they’ll take action.