US Election Diary

* John McCain's knack of making enemies in the music business was already an embarrassment. John Mellencamp, Heart, Van Halen and Jackson Browne have all either objected or sued when the self-styled maverick used their songs without consent. Now he has upset the rock act Foo Fighters and their frontman Dave Grohl, for pinching their track "My Hero". "It's frustrating and infuriating that someone who claims to speak for the American people would repeatedly show such little respect for creativity and intellectual property," the band said in a statement. The band seemed even more annoyed at having their art linked to the McCain message. "The saddest thing about this is that 'My Hero' was written as a celebration of the common man and his extraordinary potential. To have it appropriated without our knowledge and used in a manner that perverts the original sentiment of the lyric just tarnishes the song." At this rate, McCain and Palin will have to record their own duet to pump up those rallies.

* "That one". It sounded to many like a shocking example of disrespect shown to Barack Obama by his Republican rival during this week's TV debate. Others thought it just a clumsy turn of phrase. But enterprising Obama supporters have turned turned the words into a marketing opportunity by setting up a website and facebook group dedicated to "That One". On www.thatone08.com you can access flattering biographical information about That One ("That One was born in Hawaii on August 4, 1961. His father, That One Sr, was born and raised in a small village in Kenya... That One's mother, Ann Dunham, grew up in small-town Kansas etc") and buy "That One 08" logo T-shirts for $24.95.

Related articles

• Obama is a traitor, cry McCain supporters
• Michelle stays cool on 'Daily Show'
• Matthew Norman: The peculiar tragedy of this flawed hero, John McCain
• Leading article: Mud-slinging to little effect
• On The Campaign Trail
• Search the news archive for more stories

* Ask an American voter what they know about John McCain or Barack Obama and a jumble of rumour, myth and half truth emerges. Now two comic books have been published to fill the knowledge gap. In his comic, McCain is shown being struck by captors in a Vietnam PoW camp. Obama is portrayed as an earnest community organiser sitting around a kitchen table with working-class Chicago people.