Publicity of the Double-Edged Sword Kind

Over the weekend, references to the Bush re-election campaign's new video ads began appearing in blogs and BlogPulse. And not too flatteringly (see Saturday's BlogBites). By Monday, the official web site of the Bush re-election campaign emerged as the top link of the day. The video ads, called "The Coalition of the Wild-Eyed," (and found on the Bush web site under "Latest TV ads"; click on one to get to the wild-eyed entry) intersperse images of Adoph Hitler with clips of former Vice President Al Gore, former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean, (gloating?) filmmaker Michael Moore and Democratic hopeful Sen. John Kerry.

Perhaps not surprisingly, on the same day that the Bush web site jumped to top spot among key links, Fahrenheit 9/11 creator Moore jumped to the top spot among key people. The weekend release of his movie (on a limited number of screens nationwide) broke all-time box-office records for a documentary film.

Might as well keep the political theme going, which explains why NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. pops into the No. 33 spot among key people. And it's not because he took the checkered flag. Turns out he encouraged his crew to see Fahrenheit 9/11 as a good bonding experience. Some bloggers are speculating whether fan reaction will be supportive...or Dixie Chick-like?

TREND OF THE DAY: So how is the incumbent president tracking compared to his Democratic challenger? Check out this week's Bush vs. Kerry BlogPulse Trend.