$1 billion for presidential campaign ads While most traditional media are suffering from the weak economy and long-term erosion of their audience's attention, local TV stations in hotly contested states are raking in cash from record levels of campaign spending. Edward DeMarco, overseer of mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, who says his efforts to protect investors in mortgage-backed securities have been mischaracterized as sympathy for corporate interests. DeMarco, acting director of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, has been criticized by homeowners and lawmakers who want debt forgiveness for troubled borrowers even as the government-run companies rely on $190 billion in U.S. bailout funds.