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.

Columbus, OH is the number one sports town in the U.S., Scarborough Sports Marketing, a joint partnership with Nielsen and Arbitron, reported Wednesday.
Two-thirds (66%) of adults in Columbus reported being “very” interested in at least one of the 29 sports measured by Scarborough, including the major leagues, motor sports, college sports, minor leagues, and the Olympics, among others.
Boston (64%), Buffalo (63%), and Pittsburgh (63%) rounded out the top sports markets.