McCain leads on ad negativity

MADISON, Wis. - Nearly every TV ad that Republican John McCain ran last week was negative, compared with 34 percent of those by Democrat Barack Obama, an analysis released yesterday found.

The harsher tone in McCain's ads mirrors the sharper attacks he and his running mate, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, have been making on the campaign trail as polls show Obama opening up a lead.

Obama also has a lead in fund-raising, which is letting him do more advertising than McCain, the Wisconsin Advertising Project report said.

Spending on TV advertising shows a lot about where candidates believe their campaigns are doing well and where they need to do better. States targeted for advertising spending are generally more competitive, and the candidate who can afford to run more ads has a better chance of reaching voters.

From Sept. 28 to Oct. 4, Obama spent more than $17 million on ads compared with just under $11 million by McCain and the Republican National Committee.

The last study, which looked at Sept. 6-13, showed both sides nearly equal in spending. But during that week, both sides spent about half as much as they did last week.

The candidates spent nearly $4 million last week in Ohio, more than in any other state. Obama spent more than $2 million there and in Pennsylvania, Virginia and Florida. McCain did not break $2 million in any state.

While McCain has gone more negative in recent days, over the life of the campaign neither side has had many positive ads, according to the Wisconsin Advertising Project's report.

To date, 73 percent of McCain's ads and 61 percent of Obama's have been negative, the report said.

- AP

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The son of a Democratic Tennessee state lawmaker pleaded not guilty yesterday to hacking the e-mail account of Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin.

David Kernell, 20, of Knoxville, entered the plea in federal court on the same day prosecutors unsealed an indictment charging him with intentionally accessing Palin's e-mail account without authorization.

Kernell, an economics student at the University of Tennessee, was released without posting bond, but the court forbade him from owning a computer and limited his Internet use to checking e-mail and doing class work. Trial is set for Dec. 16.

- AP