A campaign billboard for Republican presidential candidate Jeb Bush, as seen in January 2016 in Des Moines, Iowa.

'The Election-Industrial Complex'

On the Media | Mar 18, 2016

You've heard that money buys elections. But most of it is spent on television ads that are proven to be ineffective. So what is the money really for? In the April issue of Harper's Magazine, Washington editor Andrew Cockburn explains how the ads really serve to line the pockets of campaign consultants. He talks to Brooke about the commissions that come from broadcasters, how Super PACs have made the problem worse, and why television media are complicit in the 'election-industrial complex'. 

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