With the Iowa Caucus growing ever closer, we thought it would be a good time to do a deep dive into the state and see if the spending trends are matching the media narrative about who is winning. Nearly every major candidate is up on air, so we can view not only spending but also messaging trends. The main takeaway is that businessman Tom Steyer’s days of dominating the airwaves appear to be over. While he is still the largest advertiser in Iowa with $3.67 million in spending in October and November, U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders, South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, and entrepreneur Andrew Yang are all closing the gap with over $2 million spent in that same time frame. At he moment, it appears that media analysis regarding winners and losers are reflected in spending, with Buttigieg making huge investments in Iowa and surging to the top of the polls. Buttigieg has surged in Iowa. According to the RealClearPolitics.com average, he was polling at 7.5 percent in Iowa the week of September 15; the latest average has him placing

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