SYDNEY: Newspapers have become the last ditch battleground for political parties and lobby groups looking to circumvent the blackout on broadcast electioneering.
Political parties, interest groups, industry backed lobby groups and not-for-profits have all taken out major ad campaigns in newspapers following the blackout which came into effect overnight.
Daily newspapers have been flooded with full and half-page advertisments from organisations including Australian Trade Fishing Association, Australian Health Insurance Association, GetUp and Public Health Association of Australia, in an attempt to sway voters before going to the polls this weekend.
The 2010 election campaign has been popularised by aggresive campaigns from special interest groups backed by private-sector funding, most notably the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC).
Others to spend ad dollars on campaigns around the election include the anti-mining tax campaign, and the tobacco industry-backed Alliance of Australian Retailers which protested against the proposed legislation to mandate plain cigarette packaging.
Industry analysts estimate the private sector has spent in excess of $80 million on political ads this election.
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