CNN Rejected Obama Half Hour Ad

While ABC offered the Obama campaign airtime and was rejected, The Hollywood Reporter's James Hibberd reports that CNN rejected the campaign's attempt to purchase airtime for its half hour primetime ad set to air Wednesday night:

A spokesperson told Hibberd:

We were approached by the Obama campaign and declined their request. We did not want to pre-empt our programming lineup with a 30-minute spot. We rather use our air to continue to cover the campaign, candidates and issues like we always do from all points of view with the best political team on television.

Hibberd reports that Fox News was not approached by the Obama campaign. The ad is slated to air on MSNBC, making it the only cable news outlet to run the ad. NBC, Fox, CBS, and Univision will also broadcast the ad.

Despite reports to the contrary, a Fox Broadcasting executive told Politico's Ben Smith that the network did not move the World Series for the campaign ad, and that the first pitch was never slated for earlier than 8:30 PM. Rather, Fox made a "business decision" to air the ad in lieu of the pre-game special.

On Barbara Walters' Sirius radio show Tuesday, "The View" co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck lashed out against the campaign's ad buy, calling it "repulsive." Mark Halperin reports Hasselbeck's full comments:

Obviously both sides are trying to run and create image. So if we use this as, so they both have funds and are creating an image, making sure their candidates are where they need to be seen, as they need to be. I find it completely then repulsive to then - if we want to look at spending - see how Barack Obama now is going to spend what $3 million on two thirty minute ads that are going to run this week.