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Most of the TV ads supporting Mitt Romney have come from outside groups, not from Romney's own campaign. And those groups raised more than half of their money from secret donors, a much higher proportion than the secret donors backing President Obama, according to a new analysis.

As political ads ramp up on TV, a newer platform is also seeing a spike in political messages. In 2008, Barack Obama became the first presidential candidate to use political advertising in a video game. This year, the Romney campaign says it is also injecting politics into gaming.

Rep. Nancy Pelosi's Republican challenger, John Dennis, attacks her with a weird zombie ad. In 2010, an ad of his portrayed her as the wicked witch from the Wizard of Oz. That helped him get 15 percent of the vote.

In new ads from President Obama and challenger Mitt Romney, the candidates talk directly to the camera. Obama is also putting out longer television spots. Why the change of style?

It was with unbridled enthusiasm that I settled into my living room arm chair Tuesday evening - not with a cold pint of IPA after a long day’s work - but…

After tracking an hour of prime time in six swing states, we turned up just 12 political ads. Why? It turns out you're more likely to see ads during syndicated shows like Wheel of Fortune than on network shows.

Colorado is assuredly a battleground state, evidenced by several visits by both candidates. The battle for votes though is duking it out on the TV across…

In Colorado Springs, advertising for the presidential race has tripled compared with the same time four years ago. It's enough to drive even the most fervent political partisans over the edge.

Everything in this year's presidential election is supersized, except for the number of swing states in play. That's forcing a bigger pot of money to be pumped into a smaller pool of states. "There is such focus on relatively few markets that the levels of advertising we're seeing are really uncharted waters," one media analyst says.

NPR's Ari Shapiro joins host Scott Simon to preview a pair of pieces he's reported for next week on the political ad wars. He talks about the unprecedented number of ads, the money and how it feels in one community: Colorado Springs.