•Aug 6: Paris Hilton responds to the McCain ad that mentions her by participating in a spoof campaign ad.

•Aug 5: McCain releases “Broken”: by far the best directed of the ads so far, containing no direct attacks.

An announcer says: “Washington’s broken. John McCain knows it. We’re worse off than we were four years ago. Only McCain has taken on big tobacco, drug companies, fought corruption in both parties. He’ll reform Wall Street, battle big oil, make America prosper again. He’s the original maverick. One is ready to lead: McCain.”

•Meanwhile: Black-and-white images of the White House, the Capitol and the interior of the floor of the House of Representatives — with lawmakers in motion — flash on the screen. Then a profile shot of McCain is followed by a gas pump with its numbers turning upward. The screen fades to black momentarily, and then, everything is in color. The next scenes show McCain talking to voters beside his Straight Talk Express bus, climbing into his campaign plane and at a town-hall-style meeting with the stripes of an American flag in the background. The words “The Original Maverick” appear on the screen at the end. (description from NYT)

•Aug 4: Obama’s “Low-Road Express”: accuses McCain of resorting to lies and slander.

Obama’s “Pocket”: claims that McCain is in the pocket of the oil companies.

•Aug 1: McCain’s “The One” (Web release): mocks hardcore Obama supporters; represents Obama as Moses parting the Red Sea.

McCain’s “Obama forgot Latin America” (Web release): tries to appeal to a typically Democratic Latin American community. Racial tensions remain high between blacks and Latin Americans in the US, as many blacks accuse the immigrant populations of taking their jobs.

•July 30: Obama’s “Low Road” accuses McCain of low-brow tactics and lies, such as the claim that Obama refused to visit soldiers because there wouldn't be a photo-op.

McCain’s “Celeb” compares Obama to Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, uses his celebrity status against him.

To watch presidential campaign ads— in an organised forum —- from both candidates online, visit Stanford University’s Political Communication Lab website: .

Obama's team also established a website in late July called LowRoadExpress.com; it is dedicated to detecting and recording “low blows”. The whole Low-Road Express theme seems to have come from a New York Times editorial on July 30 of the same name, which itself was a play on the name of McCain’s tour bus, “The Straight Talk Express”.

Obama likes to focus on two things: McCain’s negativity and, indirectly, his agedness and homogeneity. For example, in his “Low Road” and “Low-Road Express” rebuttals, Obama ends his tirade against McCain with “John McCain. Same old politics. Same failed policies [italics added].” Low blows themselves which call to mind McCain’s age and his sameness— or ‘whiteness’, as is popularly expressed.

McCain likes to focus on Obama's outrageous positivity (shall we say) and, less discreetly than Obama, on his age. McCain paints Obama as inexperienced, and this theme works with the rockstar-saviour-idealist image he's been developing more recently.

What’s working? Well, McCain is rising in the polls rather quickly, and he has dominated Obama on Youtube for the last week. Only time will tell who will be able to retain the interest of the American electorate in this already too-drawn-out affair.

CBS News: Obama, 45 %; McCain, 39 %

Time magazine Obama, 46 %; McCain, 41 %

AP-Ipsos Obama, 47 %;

McCain, 41 %