First
lady Michelle Obama introduces daughter Sasha to King
Juan Carlos and Queen Sofia of Spain, Aug. 9.
Publico, Spain
'Michelle Effect' Brings
Spain $25 Million Media
Windfall
"Kantar
Media's survey analyzed the impact and value in euros of the 'Michelle effect'
on the press, radio and television. The visit had more coverage in print news,
777 articles, followed by television spots, 346, and finally radio spots, 300. In
economic terms, the trip resulted in the greatest returns for television: $13.8
million; then newspapers: $6.10 million; and finally for radio stations: $5.52 million."
First lady Michelle Obama: Under fire from Republicans at home for vacationing in Spain, her visit to the country appears to have done wonders for Spain's media and tourism industries.
Madrid: The Obama's holiday visit has had an advertising
windfall of about €20 million [$26.45 million] in Spain, according to Kantar Media, a company
dedicated to monitoring and measuring media and TV audiences.
According to the company,
foreign media coverage brought about by the visit of the U.S. first lady has translated into a large-scale promotion of Spanish tourism. A
survey conducted by the firm shows that the 1,423 news reports on the visit
have had a total economic value of $25.7 million [€19.3 million].
The figure arrived at by the
company was calculated based on what it would cost if a publicity agent wanted to
promote tourism in Spain. According to the firm, the agent "would have to
spend that amount on advertising in order to achieve the same media impact."
In fact, the company
emphasized how the Obama's visit to Costa del Sol, despite being characterized
as private, has generated coverage "well beyond" other major issues,
such as the air traffic controllers strike [1034 news stories], or the
announcement by the Madrid Socialist Party's general secretary, Thomas Gomez, that
he intends to be a candidate for the presidency of the Communities of Madrid
[1012 news stories].
The Spanish cities that have gotten
the most out of the Obama trip have been Marbella, Ronda, Granada and Mallorca.
For his part, Mayor José Antonio Mena of Malaga, where the Hotel Villa Padierna is
located and in which the Obamas have been staying, said the trip was "a
unique opportunity to promote tourism in Costa del Sol and project Spain into
the U.S. market."
Posted by WORLDMEETS.US
Kantar Media's survey also
analyzes the impact and value in euros of the "Michelle effect" on
the press, radio and television. The visit had more coverage in print news, 777
articles, followed by television spots, 346, and finally radio spots, 300.
In economic terms, the trip resulted
in the greatest returns on television: $13.8 million [€10.50 million]; then newspapers: $6.10
million [€4.61
million]; and finally on radio stations, $5.52 million [€4.18 million].
The study focused on news
published in the press or broadcast nationally and
regionally on radio and television, from August 4, when the Obama's landed at Malaga airport, up to August
9, at the end of the visit in Malaga, when they had lunch with the royal family
at the Marivent Palace in Mallorca.
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