Obama in October 2002

A ThinLine reader asks:

Is this misleading the voters? Is this another example of the campaign's strategy to mislead, redirect and obfuscate the public? Just like with the vote on Iran? Instead of Obama answering the question of why he didn't show up to vote—he just says that it wasn't a close vote!! 

The reader, an Illinois voter, sent this from the Chicago Sun times:

Sweet blog extra: Obama ad uses sound effect to create fake impression.

WASHINGTON-- The Obama campaign readily admits that White House hopeful Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) had to record a portion of his October, 2002 anti-war speech made at an outdoor rally for a new ad that went on-line Thursday. There is no good audio tape of the Chicago rally that is playing a pivotal role in the Obama campaign.

"It was Barack re-reading a portion of the speech. As I told you, there is no original tape," Obama's chief strategist David Axelrod told me in an e-mail exchange.

However, the ad uses sound effects to create the impression that Obama is making the speech at a rally. It is a sound effect to make it seem something it is not.

The sound on the ad makes it seem like the audio is being picked up on a loud speaker. What you hear are Obama's words that have a sort of echo effect--reverbs and other wild sound.
http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2007/10/sweet_blog_extra_obama_ad_uses.html

ThinLine remembers that day in October 2002.

***  This was before Obama officially announced he was running for Senate which did not happen for another three months in January of 2003. ***

There was a fairly sparse crowd and no rally.

This was when supporters had to beg friends and family to show up at events for this little known Illinois state Senator.

But ThinLine recalls some coverage on local channels.

*** Someone has film. ***

TELL OBAMA THIS IS BENEATH WHAT LITTLE DIGNITY HE HAS LEFT