July 29 - Historically, presidential election campaigns tend to heat up as a summer to heat up as summer winds down. This year seems to be no exception. In August, conservative groups are planning multi year media attacks on Democratic candidate Barack Obama. Judith Siers-Poisson and Diane Farsetta of PRWatch.org report.

"The Return of the Swift Boat Crew"

August is shaping up as the month when conservative groups will unleash attacks against Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama. That's when the conservative publishing outfit Regnery will release the book "The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media's Favorite Candidate." Four years ago, Regnery released "Unfit for Command" an attack on the Vietnam War service of then-Democratic candidate John Kerry.

The new Regnery book is being promoted by Creative Response Concepts, the same public relations firm that promoted "Unfit for Command" and the anti-Kerry group Swift Boat Veterans for Truth in 2004. The firm's other clients have included federal Republican Party committees, Concerned Women for America and the National Abstinence Education Association.

August will also see the publication of "The Obama Nation," another anti-Obama book with Swift Boat ties. Its author is Jerome Corsi, who co-authored "Unfit for Command." Lastly, the conservative group Citizens United is readying an anti-Obama movie. The group earlier bet on the wrong horse, producing an anti-Clinton film titled, "Hillary: The Movie." According to the Citizens United website, its anti-Obama movie will feature interviews with former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, conservative pundit Dick Morris and disgraced payola pundit Armstrong Williams.

Interview: Paul Waldman of Media Matters

With the latest round of attacks coming to Barack Obama from the release of books and a new documentary, what part will the media play in fanning or squashing any new claims.

Election Unspun producer Karen Miller spoke with Paul Waldman senior fellow at the media watchdog group Media Matters. Waldman says swift book groups will always be producing this type of material but in the past election the media didn't rebuke false claims.