Despite finger-pointing from both sides, Barack Obama and John McCain’s presidential campaigns have run almost the same number of negative local campaign ads, Nielsen Monitor-Plus reported Thursday.
From June 3, when the primaries ended, through Sept. 7, the most recent reporting period, the McCain campaign ran 76,192 negative ads against Obama. During the same time period, the Obama campaign placed 75,246 negative commercials against McCain.
Negative advertising by both candidates and the “527” groups that support them has concentrated in the top battleground states, led by Ohio, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin.
| Rank (By # Of Ads) |
State | # Of McCain Negative Ads Placed By Obama & 527s |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohio | 11,037 |
| 2 | Michigan | 10,397 |
| 3 | Wisconsin | 8,974 |
| 4 | Pennsylvania | 8,569 |
| 5 | Colorado | 4,332 |
| 6 | Florida | 4,112 |
| 7 | Missouri | 3,899 |
| 8 | Nevada | 3,741 |
| 9 | Virginia | 3,260 |
| 10 | Iowa | 3,170 |
| Source: The Nielsen Company (June 3, 2008 – September 7, 2008). |
| Rank (By # Of Ads) |
State | # Of Obama Negative Ads Placed By McCain & 527s |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ohio | 14,397 |
| 2 | Michigan | 12,292 |
| 3 | Pennsylvania | 11,363 |
| 4 | Wisconsin | 10,005 |
| 5 | Iowa | 7,172 |
| 6 | Colorado | 6,016 |
| 7 | Nevada | 4,766 |
| 8 | Missouri | 4,305 |
| 9 | New Mexico | 2,106 |
| 10 | West Virginia | 1,970 |
| Source: The Nielsen Company (June 3, 2008 – September 7, 2008). |
The three commercials used most frequently by each candidate’s campaigns aired more than 10,000 times each.
| Top 3 McCain Ads Against Obama | # Of Commercials Placed On Local TV |
|---|---|
| Negative – Obama/ Spending/Budget/ Taxes/ Men | 16,354 |
| Negative – Obama/ Higher Taxes/ Foreign Oil | 16,215 |
| Negative – Obama/ Gas / Domestic Drilling | 10,760 |
| Source: The Nielsen Company (June 3, 2008 – September 7, 2008). |
| Top 3 Obama Ads Against McCain | # Of Commercials Placed On Local TV |
|---|---|
| Negative – McCain/ Iraq War/ Oil/ Economy | 11,140 |
| Negative – McCain/ Housing/ Economy | 10,187 |
| Negative – McCain/ Economy/ Taxes/ Iraq War | 10,074 |
| Source: The Nielsen Company (June 3, 2008 – September 7, 2008). |
View each candidate’s top negative ad below.
Read coverage of Nielsen’s findings in Newsweek, AdAge, the Chicago Tribune’s “The Swamp” political blog, The Boston Globe, and the Los Angeles Times.
McCain Ad: Expensive Plans
Obama Ad: Book
