The Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law and the Justice at Stake Campaign are teaming up to provide regular snapshots of the television advertising campaigns for and against the confirmation of Judge John Roberts to the U.S. Supreme Court, the two public interest groups announced today. The Brennan Center and Justice at Stake regularly collaborate on analyses of interest group advertising in state Supreme Court elections. The research and analysis will provide valuable insight into messages being employed by interest groups, where resources are being spent, and which Senators' votes are being targeted in the confirmation process. The data -- which will reflect advertising buys made in the nation's top 100 broadcast television Designated Market Areas (DMAs) -- will shed light on the interest groups that are lining up to support or oppose Judge Roberts' confirmation. The public hearings for Judge Robert's confirmation begin Sept. 6, though TV advertising has been under way for weeks. "The public has a right to know who is spending what to affect the confirmation of a new U.S. Supreme Court Justice," noted Deborah Goldberg, Democracy Program director at the Brennan Center. "But many 527 organizations will not file official reports until the end of this year, and other major advertisers may not disclose their finances at all. This study helps to close that gap." "Interest groups are mobilizing around the Roberts nomination, just as they've been getting more involved in state Supreme Court elections," said Bert Brandenburg, executive director of Justice at Stake. "This project will provide the best snapshot to date of interest group efforts to influence America's courts." The Brennan Center and Justice at Stake project will include information on when and where the ads ran, who paid for the ads, as well as how many spots were aired and the estimated cost of each advertising purchase. The groups will issue periodic updates of the data as it becomes available, and will also post storyboards and streaming video of each ad online (subject to availability). The data for the project is gathered by TNS-Media Intelligence/CMAG, which tracks the nation's top 100 DMAs and provides estimates on the cost of each television spot. Reporters who wish to receive e-mail updates as the data becomes available should contact Jesse Rutledge of Justice at Stake at 202-588-9454 or jrutledge@justiceatstake.org.