Be a part of something historic

CCTV's been broadcasting live from the earthquake-stricken regions of Sichuan for the past week, and has also been devoting interview and analysis programming to the earthquake relief effort.

It's also been running ads, of course. Here's a rate card that's been floating around online:

CCTV Earthquake-Rescue-Themed Advertising Plan

At 2:28pm on 12 May, a major, 7.8-magnitude earthquake occurred in Wenchuan County, Sichuan Province, in western China, a natural disaster that caused the worse loss of life in China since the 1976 Tangshan Earthquake.

CCTV has put the entire force of its stations to following the latest developments in the earthquake rescue effort, using live broadcasts, in-depth reports, and interviews to show the whole process of the Chinese people's united will to combat this natural disaster.

Humanity has emotions in the face of unfeeling calamity, so let us offer up our hearts and lift our voices to express our good wishes toward those who have been afflicted by the earthquake, and our sympathy and encouragement to those heroes on the front lines of the rescue effort.

1. Ad Format

Earthquake Rescue PSA + Company-Specific Earthquake Rescue-Themed Corporate Brand Identity Advertisement

1. Earthquake Rescue PSA: Produced by the Ad Department. A PSA with the content, "Earthquake Rescue, Unity of Will Forms a Stronghold."
2. Company-Specific Earthquake Rescue-Themed Corporate Brand Identity Advertisement:
1) Produced by the company itself. Content to be a corporate brand identity advertisement that complements the theme of the earthquake rescue effort.
2) Broadcast order to be determined according to the invoice.

2. Ad Broadcast Schedule

CCTV-1 and CCTV-News joint live broadcasts; CCTV-News live broadcasts. No fewer than 8 airings per day.

3. Ad Cost

Units: 10,000 RMB / day

5 seconds: 35
10 seconds: 53
15 seconds: 66
20 seconds: 90
25 seconds: 106
30 seconds: 119

CCTV
2008.05.13

via IdeoBook, who comments, "Who can make a mint off a national tragedy?"

On the other hand, a week's worth of live broadcasts on-location in the mountains of Sichuan can't be cheap, and CCTV did donate 50 million RMB to the relief effort, so maybe the reality isn't as crass as it looks on the printed page.