Ad wars: Obama buys more, Clinton sets tempo

When it comes to campaign commercials, Sens. Barack Obama (D-IL) and Hillary Clinton (D-NY) are going where no candidate has gone before. "Obama and Clinton have spent a combined $110 million on TV ads to this point; we've had a race that's literally gone on since last summer for ad spending," said Evan Tracey of TNS Media Intelligence/Campaign Media Analysis Group, CNN's consultants on campaign commercials. "We're beyond what has been record spending in previous presidential nomination campaigns. John Kerry spent close to $20 million to get the nomination four years ago. Barack Obama's already approaching $70 million." Sen Obama outspent Sen Clinton on ad buys in Pennsylvania by slightly more than 2-to-1, and Tracey says Obama is outspending his rival for the Democratic presidential nomination by about the same ratio in Indiana and North Carolina, which hold primaries May 6. But is Sen Obama getting bang for the buck? Sen Clinton "has been able to dictate the tempo in the last few contests, be that Texas, Ohio and then Pennsylvania," Tracey said. "What she has to continue to do is dictate the tempo of this race with her TV ads. She doesn't have as much money ... but if she's allowed to dictate the tempo, she can make up for that lack of spending."
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/04/27/ad.buys/index.html