Obama's ad campaign extends to more states

More Americans will see presidential campaign ads before Election Day because of Democrat Barack Obama's deep pockets and his quest to expand the number of competitive states in his race against Republican John McCain. Obama and McCain advertise in about a dozen battleground states such as Ohio and Pennsylvania. Obama's stronger fundraising means he can afford also to run ads in states such as Alaska and Montana that rarely see general-election TV spots — as well as air his commercials nationally during NBC's broadcast of the Olympic Games next month. "The one thing Obama will do differently than previous candidates is do more national television buys," says John Geer, a political advertising expert at Vanderbilt University. "Because he has a plan to go after so many different states, in some cases, it's going to be more effective" than buying ad time in individual markets. Obama has spent about $27 million on general-election ads and McCain has spent $25 million, according to Evan Tracey of Campaign Media Analysis Group, which tracks political ads. Political campaigns almost always buy ad time in local markets, city by city, to target their ads more precisely. As a result, many Americans never see a presidential ad — while some see thousands. Both candidates are on the air in Colorado, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Missouri, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. Obama advertises in Virginia, and McCain reaches voters in the northern part of the state by running ads in Washington. Other traditionally Republican states where Obama advertises are Georgia, Indiana, North Carolina and North Dakota.