clipped from: www.marketingcharts.com 
Advertising spending in the first half of 2008 declined slightly (-1.4%) compared with the first half of 2007, despite healthy advertising growth for several media and among some top advertisers, according to preliminary figures from Nielsen Monitor-Plus.
Advertising on Cable TV underwent the largest growth, with an increase of 8.1% over the first half of 2007, while Spot Radio fared worst among the 19 media categories analyzed by Nielsen, declining 10.1%.
Spending for the 10 largest advertising categories reached just over $20 billion in the first half of this year, 0.02% less than the same period last year. Most of the top 10 product categories showed increased spending, with the exception of Automotive (-8.01%), Pharmaceutical (-4.76%), Motion Picture (-4.64%), and Auto Dealerships (-0.62%).
