Obama Spot Snags 22% of Viewers

Analysts see little risk in appeal to undecideds

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama’s 30-minute infomercial tonight comes at a time when 11th-hour deciders start to look for information, Jeanne Cummings writes in Politico. There is some risk of overkill, analysts say, but the Democrat can afford the outlay. “It’s like football,” one GOP strategist says. “People may complain that a team is running up the score, but that team is still the one that wins." More»

Some did, some didn't, making a headline tough to write

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama's half-hour TV pitch scored with writers on the left—though one found it embarrassing to admit to being seduced by an infomercial—while those on the right were turned off:

• Saying it was hardly the "gauzy, feel-good commercial," McCain labeled it in advance, John Nichols of the Nation found it an effective expression of empathy for a hurting populace. “Obama presented a chronicle of despair,” he writes, telling stories that were "crying to be told."

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama made few concrete proposals in his multi-million-dollar TV spot last night, but the infomercial wasn't about policy, writes Tom Shales; it was about "sensibility." For the Washington Post columnist, Obama's long-form advertisement succeeded as a soft-focus, optimistic simulation "of how it would feel to live in an America with Barack Obama in the White House." More»

Unprecedented Democratic ad blitz to break Bush record within days

(NEWSER) - Barack Obama is outspending John McCain 4-to-1 on advertising nationwide and is on course to break George Bush's 2004 spending record within days, reports the New York Times. Obama has stepped up his spending since the start of October and is blitzing network TV, cable TV, and even video games with campaign ads, both negative and positive. More»

Candidate inspires conservatives, scares liberals

(NEWSER) - Political action groups have spent far less on ads during this presidential election than they did in 2004, but Sarah Palin’s entry into the race has begun to push that number up, reports the Wall Street Journal. Groups like Planned Parenthood have seen an uptick in donations from “scared and motivated” liberals—while voters on the right have rallied to fill the coffers of conservative groups. More»