McKenna Media

What McKenna Media does

McKenna Media is a Baltimore-headquartered political media consulting firm that produces paid-media campaigns (television, radio, and digital) for Democratic and progressive clients across the United States. The firm is built on a staff of approximately 5–6 senior political operatives led by founder Martha McKenna, with partners and principals drawn from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, Senate Majority PAC, EMILY's List, the Obama White House, and major advocacy organizations. The client base spans federal independent-expenditure committees (Senate Majority PAC, DSCC, EMILY's List WOMEN VOTE, Unite the Country PAC), individual congressional and statewide candidates (including U.S. Senate races such as Angela Alsobrooks in Maryland and Ruben Gallego in Arizona), state legislative chamber-flip efforts, mayoral and city council campaigns, ballot measure campaigns (Maryland Question 2 sports betting), and nonprofit advocacy work for the ACLU, United Brotherhood of Carpenters, and Strong Schools Maryland.

The firm's service model is end-to-end within paid media: message development, candidate research, video and audio production, and placement strategy across broadcast, cable, streaming, and digital. There is no proprietary software platform, no AI tooling, and no standardized self-serve product — every engagement is a custom professional services project, and production capacity is anchored by an in-house Director of Production (Natalie James) rather than external vendor reliance. Geographic reach is national despite the Baltimore, MD headquarters (3000 Chestnut Avenue, Suite 101), with documented work across more than twenty states.

The business is a privately held, founder-controlled boutique consulting firm with no outside investment, no parent company, and no public revenue disclosure. Pricing is engagement-based and not publicly disclosed; revenue mechanics resemble a professional services model augmented by potential media placement economics tied to the size of each client's IE budget. Acquisition of new clients is driven primarily by political-network referrals and a public case-study portfolio rather than active marketing, and the firm has grown by adding senior hires at roughly annual cadence (Isaiah Nelson in 2018, Natalie James in 2023, Julia Evans in 2024, Diana Astiz in 2025), each bringing a discrete capability extension to the practice.

Name

McKenna Media

Legal name

McKenna Media

Website

https://mckennamedia.tv

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

McKenna Media is a Baltimore-based political media consulting firm producing television, radio, and digital advertising campaigns for Democratic candidates, party PACs, and progressive advocacy organizations across federal, state, and local races nationwide.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Political Media Consulting

NAICS

Advertising Agencies (541810), Media Buying Agencies (54183), Public Relations Agencies (54182)

SIC

Services-Advertising Agencies (7311), Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Production (7812)

akta.pro primary industry

Full-Service Media Planning & Buying (MPAAABAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Media Relations & Press Office Services (MPAAADAI), Nonprofit & Cause Communications (BPAFADAK)

Keywords

• Political media consulting
• Campaign advertising production
• Electoral strategy consulting
• Advocacy campaign communications
• Progressive political advertising

Headquarters

HQ city

Baltimore

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Political Campaign Consulting: Professional services fees for media consulting, campaign strategy, and advertising production for political candidates, PACs, and advocacy organizations at federal, state, and local levels. Engagement-based work with specific campaigns.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

McKenna Media is a political media consulting firm that produces TV, radio, and digital advertising campaigns for Democratic political candidates, PACs, party committees, unions, and advocacy organizations. Its work spans federal, statewide, congressional, state legislative, and local races, combining message development, creative video and audio production, and targeted media buying to deliver winning campaigns at national, state, and city levels.

Product overview

McKenna Media is a political media consulting firm offering a unified suite of campaign services centered on TV, radio, and digital advertising production and placement. The company specializes in electoral campaigns at all levels—federal (Senate, House), statewide, state legislative, and local (mayoral, city council)—as well as advocacy and ballot measure communications. Their core offering integrates strategy development, message crafting, and multi-format media production into cohesive winning campaigns. The portfolio spans National & Statewide Campaigns, Congressional Campaigns, City & Local Campaigns, State Legislative Campaigns, and Advocacy and Ballot Measures Campaigns, all delivered as professional services rather than self-serve software products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• TV Campaigns Television advertising production and placement service for Democratic political candidates and advocacy organizations, including creative development and broadcast media buying.
• Radio Campaigns Radio advertising production and placement service for political messaging and advocacy communications, including audio creative development and station media buying.
• Digital Campaigns Digital advertising across streaming platforms, cable, and online media for political campaigns, including digital creative production and online media buying.
• National & Statewide Campaigns Media consulting and advertising production for federal (U.S. Senate) and statewide (governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, comptroller, state supreme court) political campaigns.
• Congressional Campaigns Media consulting and advertising production for U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Senate congressional campaigns.
• City & Local Campaigns Media consulting and advertising production for mayoral, city council, and other local government electoral campaigns.
• State Legislative Campaigns Media consulting and advertising production for state House and state Senate legislative campaigns, including chamber flips and incumbent defeats.
• Advocacy and Ballot Measures Campaigns Issue advocacy campaigns and ballot measure communication strategies for progressive advocacy organizations, unions, and issue-based groups, including referendum and policy-focused advertising.

Quantifiable outcome

• Overcame nearly $30 million in Republican spending to elect Angela Alsobrooks to U.S. Senate
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers24 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Others

• EMILY's List: Major Democratic political organization supporting pro-choice women candidates, and a current McKenna Media client. Not a competitor — instead a key buyer of political media services — but materially comparable in mission alignment and serves as both a customer and an adjacent player in the progressive political ecosystem.

Direct peers

• 270 Strategies: Progressive political consulting firm offering campaign management, paid media, and organizing services to Democratic candidates and causes — overlaps with McKenna Media on campaign strategy and paid-media execution for progressive clients.
• SKDK: Major progressive public affairs and political advertising firm offering full-service campaign strategy, media production, and crisis communications to Democratic candidates and causes, competing head-to-head with McKenna Media on many of the same federal and statewide engagements.
• GMMB: One of the largest progressive political media and advertising firms in the U.S., serving Democratic campaigns, PACs, and advocacy organizations across TV, radio, and digital — directly competing with McKenna Media for the same Senate Majority PAC, DSCC, and IE engagements.
• Putnam Partners: Boutique political PR and public affairs firm serving Democratic candidates, party committees, and corporate clients — comparable to McKenna Media in size, progressive positioning, and reliance on senior practitioner relationships.
• Hilltop Public Solutions: Progressive public affairs and political consulting firm providing strategic communications and paid media for Democratic campaigns, labor unions, and advocacy organizations — directly comparable client roster and service mix to McKenna Media.
• Bully Pulpit Interactive: Progressive digital-first political media and advertising agency serving Democratic campaigns, PACs, and nonprofit advocacy organizations — directly comparable to McKenna Media, with a stronger emphasis on digital and data-driven creative.
• Rising Tide Interactive: Progressive digital advertising agency specializing in online fundraising and persuasion campaigns for Democratic candidates and progressive nonprofits — comparable to McKenna Media in progressive alignment and political advertising focus, though more digitally concentrated.
• Trilogy Interactive: Progressive digital agency serving Democratic campaigns, progressive organizations, and labor unions — comparable to McKenna Media's progressive political client base, though with a stronger digital/programmatic emphasis.
• AKPD Message and Media: Democratic-aligned political media consulting firm (founded by Obama-era strategists) producing TV, radio, and digital advertising for candidates and progressive causes — overlaps directly with McKenna Media's core service offering and client base.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mckenna-mediatv

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about McKenna Media