Brand & Martínez for September 20, 2012

Breaking down the best and worst in political advertisements

Iowa Sets The Stage For Nation's First Vote In Upcoming Presidential Election

Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

Dozens of televisions display a political advertisement with the image of former President Ronald Reagan at the American furniture electronics and appliances store in Urbandale, Iowa.

More than $600 million has been spent on TV and radio ads this election season. The bulk of the ads are concentrated in battleground states like Ohio, Virginia and Florida.

In those states, it's hard to watch a show without hearing at least one pitch for President Obama or his Republican challenger, Mitt Romney.

To get a better sense of how the political ad wars are playing out in swing states like Florida, we called Samir Mathur, a 29 year old attorney who watches a lot of TV.

For many politicians not on the national stage like President Obama or Mitt Romney, the goal of an advertisement is simply to get noticed. But with so many candidates filling so much air time, it can be hard to stand out.

Aaron Blake, who writes for the Washington Post's blog the Fix, and Elahe Izadi from National Journal, join the show to discuss some of the most memorable and most forgettable ads of election season.

Guests:

Samir Mathur, Florida resident

Aaron Blake, writer for Washington Post blog 'The Fix'

Elahe Izadi, reporter for the National Journal

To watch the ads discussed in this segment, scroll down:

"Pigs" from Ted Yoho for Congress

"Freedom's Flame" from Todd Akin

"Big Spender" in favor of Tim Kaine

"Straight Shooter" from Ron Gould


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