• The New York Times, Thursday, March 13, 2008 10 AM

With the next big Democratic primary set for Pennsylvania next month, a new analysis of ad spending in neighboring Ohio may offer the candidates a few insights. The two Democrats -- Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama -- spent about $8 million TV alone in the Buckeye State, although 15% of that total came from outside groups like labor unions and 527s. The Wisconsin Advertising Project, using information from TNS Media Intelligence Campaign, found that Obama spent almost twice as much as his rival, laying out $4.4 million more than 10,000 spots, compared to her $2.3 million for more than 6,000.

The only Ohio city where she outspent him was in Youngstown, but she still managed to win the state's popular vote by 54% to 44%. It was also one of the first states where labor coalitions backing Obama began shelling out millions allocated to the 2008 race. For example, the Service Employees International Union and the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union spent about $1 million on his behalf. The Wisconsin project also notes that more than one-fifth of Clinton's ads were considered negative compared to less than 5% from Obama.

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