[kcvl]

Since Sept. 1, the Kerry camp has released and publicized more than half a dozen commercials, on subjects ranging from taxes to health care to the war in Iraq, without buying time for them, either nationally or in battleground states. Others have run in only one or two markets after being unveiled with considerable fanfare. In effect, these have been video news releases purporting to be substantial paid advertising.

"We're certainly not trying to be disingenuous," Tad Devine, a senior Kerry adviser, said yesterday. "We've announced that we've created these and are prepared to use them at a time and place of our choosing." He said the Kerry team had to be able to show Bush's campaign "that the gun is loaded on this side, too."

Evan Tracey, an analyst at TNSMI/Campaign Media Analysis Group, which tracks political advertising, called the phantom ads -- which have routinely been covered by The Washington Post and other news organizations -- "political product placement. But they're getting away with it, because the press is playing them. When the press covers a new Bush ad, the story always adds 'and Kerry released an ad of his own.' He's getting into the news chatter."

Mark McKinnon, Bush's media adviser, said the president's campaign has never announced an ad that has not run.

While the Kerry campaign has spent tens of millions of dollars on advertising this fall, Devine described a two-step process that has not been publicly disclosed. First, an ad is made and announced, and then the campaign does research -- including focus groups, people-meter groups and overnight tracking polls -- to determine whether the Bush attacks are working and whether the campaign should spend money on the response spot.

[penelopesire]

"We're certainly not trying to be disingenuous," Tad Devine, a senior Kerry adviser, said yesterday. "We've announced that we've created these and are prepared to use them at a time and place of our choosing." He said the Kerry team had to be able to show Bush's campaign "that the gun is loaded on this side, too."

"TIME AND PLACE OF OUR CHOOSING"? Isn't that what President Bush said to OBL/Taliban after 911? Ted Devine is a nutter(rolling eyes)

[wai-ming]

"We're certainly not trying to be disingenuous,"

That's exactly what they're trying to do.
They just want to convince everyone (including themselves) otherwise.

[unspun]

On the bright side, this hebephrenic activity adds to the impression that Kerry is simply grabbing whatever shite he can find, in order to throw and see if anything sticks.

That's his "plan."