These are actually the best pieces of communication I've seen so far in this schlock-fest we call presidential campaign advertising 2000. Most of the ads I've critiqued have had a liberal layering of advertising "technique" schmeared across them in a cheesy swipe. Heavy duty "calls to action" -- "Vote Gore for Freedom," "Vote Bush for Your Future" and other propagandist sayings coat the true messages in a thick veneer. The viewer is left with an "I don't know who to believe" attitude.

These pieces of communication ring of truth. There's very little advertising agency getting in the way of the pure and simple words of the people. The words speak for themselves, from real, believable citizens. The result of these ads is way more potent than previous efforts. The Gore voter is left with a sense of surety at a time they might be swaying, and the Bush voter is left with a sense of betrayal. Chalk one up for Gore, I'd say.

Nancy Pendas-Smith is president of Conill Advertising, a wholly owned subsidiary of Saatchi & Saatchi.

This election is down to the wire and the DNC is not taking any chances or prisoners. This is some powerful stuff. Each of these spots comes off as a mini-documentary. The set up or promise in George W.'s own words and then the reality with some real down-home Texas folks to turn him into a liar. This is the Willie Horton of the new century. Is it fair? Probably not. Will it be effective? My guess is yes.

Richard Blow is the former executive editor of George magazine and is working on a book about John F. Kennedy Jr.

These four films constitute the most powerful case Al Gore has yet made against George W. Bush. They hit him hard on issues, but more importantly, they undermine his credibility, his character, the whole idea that just because Bush seems like a nice guy, he is compassionate. How compassionate can you be if you haven't visited a colonia even once in six years?

We've seen this "I know what you did in Texas" strategy before: George Bush used it with devastating effectiveness against Michael Dukakis with his ads about pollution in Boston Harbor and Massachusetts' weekend furlough program. It's effective.

There's just one problem. This line of attack takes time to develop, and time is one thing Gore doesn't have. He's about six months too late to make this smear stick. I'm betting Gore knows this, too -- that's why these are longer videos, not ads. Frankly, they get a little boring at this length, and you have to wonder who would watch them.

My hunch is that these videos are meant to serve two purposes: to make the case against Bush just as television stations and editorial boards are considering their endorsements; and to rally key elements of Gore's base -- Latinos, environmentalists (who might be pondering Nader), teachers and women.

This is nitty-gritty politicking, the kind that you get in the last two weeks of a campaign. Too bad for Gore he didn't try it sooner.

Mark Frisk is a senior producer at Ogilvy & Mather in New York.

I had heard that this 10-minute video, evidently the centerpiece of a coordinated national campaign, was coming down the pike, and I'm pleasantly surprised at its lack of stridency. The tone is measured, not alarmist. The facts, however, come through clearly, and they are damning.

Dividing the thing into four easy-to-digest chunks, each one devoted to a specific aspect of Bush's record, is smart, as is leading off each segment with video of the governor addressing that particular aspect. (This is, after all, "Texans in Their Own Words.") The producers let Bush sink his own ship. Note that they haven't made use of any of the countless Bush gaffes we've heard in the last several months. That would have been too easy and probably would have backfired. I couldn't help but notice, though, the little "heh" that escapes his lips right after he says, "I'm for clean air and clean water." Very telling.

Helping the Good Ship Bush sink are the real people, real Texans, speaking evenly and calmly about what their governor has done, or hasn't done, for them and their fellow residents lately. Their composure is admirable, almost moving, and it enhances the video's effectiveness dramatically. Showing them crying or mad or visibly upset would have distracted viewers from the basic, gut-wrenching issues at hand. These real people and their matter-of-fact manner are the payoff, and I think they've been used to great effect.

Note also that the DNC's candidate himself is nowhere to be seen. This is also smart. We all know the trouble Gore's gotten in for telling stories about real people. It's time to let the people (real Texans, to boot) speak for themselves.

This video strikes me as a "clean" hit. It seems somehow, in some small way, to be above the fray. Of course, Republicans probably won't see it that way. I suspect that the Democratic governors and members of the House who are taking part in this coordinated campaign, not to mention Gore himself, will not be so delicate and calm in hammering on these issues. It's up to them to really drive things home. But these real Texans have gotten things off to an eloquent and elegant start.

I have no idea how the DNC plans to get this material in front of people, other than releasing it at press conferences and media events, so I can't speak to its ultimate effectiveness. A quibble: The woman who speaks about pollution? I probably wouldn't have shown her climbing into an SUV. That visual seems just a little bit off.

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