I would think it much more expensive to advertize in CA than PA. Further, to hit southern NJ, you have to advertize in the Phila media market. Abandoning PA is abandoning NJ (so in abandoning NY).
That was true once upon a time, but not really these days. With the advent of cable (and to a lesser extent satellite systems if they use a set top box that can store and play ads selectively) as the dominant method of accessing television it is quite feasible to target only a portion of a media market with one's "broadcast" ads. Granted, there are still those such as myself who still rely on over-the-air broadcasts, but I'm very much in the minority. Radio too is still dominated by broadcast, but it is a far less expensive medium than television.
It may be feasible to target a small portion of a TV Market by making cable buys, for example, buying local cable ads during Phillies telecasts only in New Jersey to reach South Jersey men, but despite cable balkanization, the largest audience still watches the major broadcast networks. Both presidential campaigns are currently spending a lot of money in the Boston TV market to reach New Hampshire. Connecticut Senate candidate Linda McMahon is advertising in the New York City TV market to reach Fairfield County, Connecticut (the oddest part is seeing ads mentioning her opponent's attacks without having seen the original attack ad). That will continue as long as the broadcast networks reach the most viewers and give the biggest bang for the buck.
