But the truth is that TV watchers of all ages in Philly and statewide are seeing more Obama ads than the Geico cavemen, the Bud Light "Dude," or Apple's "Mac" and "PC" combined, on shows ranging from the testosterone of Phillies baseball to the estrogen-laden "Oprah."
Political experts say that the cash-rich Obama campaign has shattered records for spending money on TV ads in Pennsylvania, especially on a per-week basis.
Neil Oxman, the veteran Philadelphia media consultant who's done many statewide races, including Gov. Rendell's, said that the Obama campaign has been spending money on TV at an astounding rate, with most of the senator's roughly $6 million in buys in the last three weeks.
Oxman, who is not affiliated with either candidate, and obtained the numbers from television stations statewide, said that Obama has nearly tripled his rival in the April 22 Democratic primary, Sen. Hillary Clinton, who's spent about $2.1 million.
What's more, most pundits agree, the TV ad blitz - mostly highlighting Obama's unique life story and his economic proposals - seems to have had the intended impact. Although polls have varied, for the most part Obama trailed Clinton in the double digits when he started running the ads, and now most surveys show him closing to a single-digit gap.
"I don't think you turn the corner just by advertising," said Jon Delano, the Pittsburgh TV pundit who also teaches politics at Carnegie-Mellon University. But he believes the ads are indeed a large reason why the race has tightened.
