The Television Bureau of Advertising has launched a new public relations campaign telling candidates for office that if they want to reach voters, then they need to advertise on broadcast television.

The "We Get Voters" campaign so far consists of a website and a commercial that will run first in the Washington, D.C., area before being broadcast nationwide. The campaign will also sponsor events and has signed on as co-sponsor of next week's Republican presidential debate.

The campaign comes as broadcasters face increasing competition from Internet content providers like YouTube for political dollars. TVB is seeking to convince candidates that broadcast television remains the best avenue for reaching the widest swath of viewers most likely to vote.

"Our goal is to send a reminder that television will be the key medium to reaching any voter," TVB CEO Steve Lanzano told the Associated Press.

Political campaigns are projected to spend $3.6 billion in advertising on broadcast television in 2016, which is far more than they spend on cable, radio or Internet ads, according to AP. However, there has been a steady shift in overall advertising revenue from television to the Internet in recent years, and that worries the broadcast industry.

The ad will run on stations that donate time to TVB. The association is also co-hosting a party during next week's GOP debate with the American Gaming Association and the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America. http://bit.ly/1IUTyyH

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