• by Wayne Friedman , February 1, 2008

Looking to grab more mid-America, and possibly the older women demographic, presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton has bought a one-hour block of prime time on Hallmark Channel on the eve of Super Tuesday.

The one-hour telecast, "Hillary's Voices Across America: A National Town Hall"--which is estimated to have cost somewhere between $20,000 and $40,000 for the 9 p.m. to 10 p.m. block, according to media buying executives--will air live on Monday, Feb. 4.

But Hallmark didn't just stop there. "We reached out to other candidates after Clinton came to us," says a Hallmark spokeswoman.

"We wanted to be fair and give all viable candidates the same opportunity," says Henry Schleiff, president and CEO, Hallmark Channel. So far, no one has taken Hallmark up on its offer.

Hallmark isn't under the same equal-time obligations of broadcast stations, but executives said they wanted to act responsibly--just like any other TV outlet. Hallmark has 84 million U.S. households. The event will also stream on HillaryClinton.com.

The show will run in a time period usually devoted to Hallmark movies. The Hallmark spokeswoman would not comment about the price tag for the show. Unlike TV stations, cable networks are not required under Federal Communications Commission rules to disclose advertising rates charged to political candidates.

After the initial Hallmark show, the TV town hall meeting for Clinton will continue for another half-hour on YouTube. Clinton has made spot buys on Hallmark in the past.

Twenty-two states are holding primaries on Super Tuesday--and Clinton and other candidates are ramping up media spending in many markets.