McCain's 'TMZ Campaign' Is Risky Business

John McCain's attack ads on the "biggest celebrity in the world" depend on Americans loving to hate stars more than they admire them, writes James Poniewozik in Time. If the tactic works, it will shift Barack Obama’s best asset into a Republican secret weapon—but "snark aside, Americans still like celebrities." Obama’s job is now to define what kind of celebrity he is going to be.

"Less Britney, more Bono or Brangelina," writes Poniewozik, who says Obama's DNC speech must pave the way. "Like an arena rocker,” the nominee must woo the whole crowd, from "hipsters who think his early stuff was better to the mainstreamers just discovering him." (More Obama-mentum stories.)