Obama campaign releases first black radio ad

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The Barack Obama re-election campaign Tuesday will air its first radio ad targeting African-Americans, campaign officials confirmed.

The 60-second ad, entitled “We’ve Got Your Back,” appeals to black voters’ nostalgia about the election of the nation’s first African-American president, calling for those voters to stand with the president again in November.

“Four years ago we made history,” a male announcer says. “Now it’s time to move forward and finish what we started together. We have to show the President we have his back.” The spot is inter-cut with audio from President Obama’s speeches, touching on familiar political and campaign themes.

“I refuse to pay for another millionaire’s tax cut by kicking children off of Head Start programs; asking students to pay more for college; or eliminating health insurance for millions of poor and elderly and disabled Americans on Medicaid,” the president can be heard saying in the ad.

Reach Media, which handles advertising for the “Tom Joyner Morning Show,” among the most popular national programs reaching a primarily black audience, confirms to theGrio that the ad is slated to begin running tomorrow. A source tells theGrio the spot will also run on the nationally syndicated “Steve Harvey Show.” A campaign official said the ad buy is “national,” but would not confirm the amount of the buy or where, or how long, it will run.

A Reach Media advertising representative tells theGrio the ad buy is “early” compared to most election years, as  advertising targeting black audiences usually comes right before  “get out the vote” efforts closer to Election Day. The timing of advertising to African-Americans, and the magnitude of ad spending with media outlets targeting or owned by African-Americans has long been a source of tension between black media and the Democratic Party.

“It is earlier than normal,” a Reach Media account manager told theGrio. “I think he’s going to hit the swing states harder, but this is an overarching message.”

The ads are being placed nationally by Fuse Advertising, an African-American owned agency based in St. Louis, Missouri, which also was contracted by the Obama campaign in 2008.

Listen to the ad here.