Left tunes in to radio to woo the masses

KOLKATA: In its mega advertising campaign even in times of fiscal crisis the Left Front government has focused majorly on the radio to reach out to the masses and counter the Trinamool Congress' "consistent hate campaign".
Around `30 crore has been allotted for advertising campaigns including hoardings and television slots. But the most innovative of them has been buying more than 60,000 seconds of air-time (in the first phase) on various private radio channels.This way, achievements of the 33-year-old Left Front government reaches the ears of at least half the populace. "This is part of our programme to inform the people of the development in Bengal. We are using various slogans Amar Sarkar Amar Pashe or Krishaker Pashe Baromash, which will be aired on prime radio time," minister of state for information and culture, Soumendranath Bera, told TOI.
In West Bengal, the radio stations have a broadcast reach of 100-150 km radius. What's more, the government could buy a 10-second slot for just about Rs 250. Bera, who has given a lot of thought to an effective campaigning mode, explained why the Left Front government was being compelled to clear the air.
"The things being said about this government is politically motivated and not based on fact or statistics. They (he didn't name the Trinamool Congress) are making the people victims of misinformation. Therefore, it's the government's job to correct the wrong. These are not corporate advertisements, but statistics on public service. No other government in the country has distributed 20,000 acres of land to the poor. We have made similar achievements in the panchayat, minority welfare and unorganized sectors. Ours is only a matter-of-fact campaign, without the frills," he claimed.
It's not as if the government hasn't done its homework. According to radio audience measurement (RAM) reports, Kolkata has around 7.5 million listeners. The figure is huge in expected to be much higher in the districts though RAM doesn't cover rural Bengal.
Didn't their advertising efforts remind one of the BJP's India Shining campaign, which did an excellent publicity job, but failed to cut much ice with voters during the 2004 Lok Sabha elections? Bera shook his head vigorously: "India Shining wasn't scientific. If was blown out of proportion. Our campaign be it on hoardings or on television or radio are strictly based on factual evidence. People will easily relate to the ads because they have been experiencing all that is portrayed on the hoardings or other media."
Trinamool's vice-president Derek O'Brien, with a decade in advertising, marketing and public relations with Ogilvy and Mather, pooh-poohed the endeavour: "Bullets and branding are being mustered simultaneously by the ruling party. It has managed to kill Product Bengal in these 34 years. As David Ogilvy had said, Consumers are not morons'. Well nor are the people of Bengal."
Would the Trinamool try and counter the Left's advertising spree? "Our biggest medium are the people. They would be the ones handling our campaign and we'll accept their verdict with all humility," added Derek.