Obama the family man

Barack Obama is up on Pennsylvania TV with one of his most personal ads to date, a soft, 30-second spot celebrating his ordinariness and firm family rooting. The ad (see it here) features cameos by his half-sister, Maya Soetoro-Ng; his wife, Michelle; and his maternal grandmother, Madelyn Dunham, who has not been visible during the campaign.

The ad, unveiled amid continued fallout over the fiery rhetoric of Obama's former pastor, seems designed to paint Obama as the all-American dad from next door.

"People recognize themselves in Barack, and they feel understood by him," Soetoro-Ng says. "In part, that's because he listens so well."

The spot is part of a massive ad buy Obama has made in Pennsylvania, which holds a pivotal primary on April 22. Recent polls suggest Hillary Clinton's lead is narrowing.