It is no secret that the 2024 election cycle is expected to be a contentious and hotly contested time period. With that expected climate, political advertising is likely to reach new heights next year.

According to a report from Axios, Group M projects political ad spending in 2024 will grow 32% to $16 billion. The organization includes if you add in direct mail spending, that figure will grow to $17.1 billion. Projections from Group M are significantly higher than others. For instance, AdImpact has shared it believes political advertising will only eclipse roughly $10 billion next year.

Previous analysis claims Arizona, Georgia, Michigan, Nevada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin are slated to see the most advertising in that sector. Arizona was projected to receive $821 million in political advertising alone.

In other sectors, Group M claims digital advertising will likely finish 2023 up 5.8% in spending. When excluding election-related advertising, $889 billion will be spent in the calendar year on the digital front.

Retail advertisers account for the majority of growth, according to the organization, which points to brands like Amazon, Kroger, and Uber as some of the largest spenders in the space.

Digital Strategy Consultant Seth Resler is departing Jacobs Media at the end of the year. Resler has spent the past eight years working with the organization. The news was reported first by Inside Radio.

“Seth has developed interests he wants to pursue, and we support him in this endeavor. As opportunities arise, he may serve as a consultant to Jacobs Media in the future,” Jacobs Media Vice President and General Manager Paul Jacobs said.

With Resler’s departure, the company has announced the addition of Chris Brunt, who will join as Director of Digital and Revenue Generation for both Jacobs Media and sister company jācapps.

Brunt has spent the past seven years as Digital Sales Manager at Beasley Media Group’s Detroit cluster.

“Over the past forty years, we have constantly adjusted and upgraded our services to adapt to our clients’ needs,” said Jacobs Media President Fred Jacobs. “Today, the big need of our clients across both of our companies is digital revenue solutions. Chris is like the ‘Swiss Army Knife’ of digital – he’s a revenue generation expert, and he understands everything from programming to programmatic.”

Former iHeartMedia Regional President Robert Dove has been named the new Market Manager at Alpha Media in Portland.

The Portland native will step into the shoes vacated after Lisa Decker announced her impending retirement. Decker worked as the cluster’s leader for the past seven years.

“I’m very excited to join the Alpha Media team. As a native Portlander having the chance to work with some of Portland radio’s most iconic brands is very rewarding and fulfilling,” said Dove. “I can’t wait to get started.”

Most recently, Dove has worked as the Managing Partner at a Portland advertising agency. He brings 36 years of broadcasting experience to the group, including a five-year run as the Regional President of iHeart, overseeing the Seattle, Portland, Spokane, Anchorage, and Fairbanks clusters.

“I am very excited to have Robert lead us to new heights, opportunities, and successes,” added Alpha Media CEO Bob Proffitt. “He knows Portland like no other broadcaster, has deep relationships and knowledge of our city’s intricacies, and will be a great addition to our team of Market Managers all across America.”

Portland serves as the Alpha Media headquarters. The cluster includes news/talk stations 101 KXL and Freedom 970.