September 5, 2008 New York, NY ­ The Diageo/Hotline Daily Tracker…

September 5, 2008

New York, NY ­ The Diageo/Hotline Daily Tracker Poll, conducted by FD, is a new daily
tracking poll that is being conducted from September 2, 2008 until Election Day, November 4,
2008. The poll is being conducted via telephone among a random, nationally representative
sample of registered voters, age 18 and older. FD is interviewing no fewer than 300
registered voters nationwide each day up to Election Day. Results will be released daily,
Monday through Friday.

Today's results are based on combined data from Sept 2 to Sept 4, 2008, with n=916
registered voters (margin of error +/- 3.2%), and a subsample of n=877 likely voters (margin
of error +/- 3.3%).


      Presidential General Election, McCain vs. Obama, September 2 - 4, 2008

                       McCain               Obama             Undecided
                        40%                  46%                10%


      Favorability Ratings for Presidential Candidates and their Running Mates,
                                September 2 - 4, 2008

                              McCain         Obama         Palin        Biden
              Favorable        52%            58%          43%           42%
              Unfavorable      38%            35%          25%           29%


             Ratings for the Candidates on Issues, September 2 - 4, 2008

                              Who Would Do A Better Job?

       Healthcare          The Economy         National Security      Energy Policies
    McCain     Obama      McCain     Obama     McCain     Obama       McCain     Obama
      36%        46%        37%       48%        50%        35%         41%        43%


While John McCain has slightly closed the gap created by Barack Obama's post-Democratic
National Convention (DNC) "bounce," McCain still trails his Democratic counterpart in a head-
to-head match-up by 6 percentage points. The Poll finds that a gender gap is driving
Obama's lead, as the candidates are tied among men (Obama ­ 44% vs. McCain ­ 44%), but
Obama leads among women by 12-points (Obama ­ 48% vs. McCain ­ 36%).

Overall, voters report having more trust in Obama to manage most issues: healthcare (by 10
points), the economy (by 11 points), and energy policies (by 2 points).

When it comes to national security, however, the public is more inclined to say that McCain is
better suited to handle the nation's national security by a sizable margin (15 percentage
points).
On other candidate attributes, voters think John McCain is "more prepared to lead the
country" (McCain ­ 49% vs. Obama ­ 39%), while voters say Obama better understands their
"needs and priorities" (Obama ­ 53% vs. McCain ­ 35%).

Public opinion toward the candidates' running mates is comparable. Sarah Palin and Joe
Biden enjoy similar favorability ratings. However, among voters within their parties, Palin
performs better than Biden. Among Republican voters, Palin scores extremely high, with 76%
viewing her favorably (46% strongly favorable), compared with 62% of Democratic voters
viewing Biden favorably (38% strongly favorable).

Spotlight on Palin

The Diageo/Hotline Daily Tracker Poll included several questions this week focusing on newly
nominated GOP vice presidential candidate, Sarah Palin.

When asked whether Palin is "prepared" or "unprepared" to step in and serve as President,
voters are split, with 45% saying she is "prepared" and 46% saying she is "unprepared." That
said, highlighting Palin's popularity with the Republican base, 74% of Republicans say she is
"prepared."

Interestingly, women voters are less inclined than men to say that Palin is prepared to serve
as President if "McCain became unable to serve as President for some reason": 49% of men
say she is "prepared," while 41% of women say she is "prepared."




To schedule an interview with Ed Reilly, contact Smriti Sateesh at (212) 850-5749 or
Smriti.Sateesh@fd.com.

About Diageo: Diageo (Dee-AH-Gee-O) is the world's leading premium drinks business with
an outstanding collection of beverage alcohol brands across spirits, wines, and beer
categories. These brands include Johnnie Walker, Guinness, Smirnoff, J&B, Baileys, Cuervo,
Tanqueray, Captain Morgan, Crown Royal, Beaulieu Vineyard and Sterling Vineyards wines.
Diageo is a global company, trading in more than 200 countries around the world. The
company is listed on both the New York Stock Exchange (DEO) and the London Stock
Exchange (DGE). Celebrating life, every day, everywhere, responsibly. For more information
about Diageo, its people, brands, and performance, visit us at www.diageo.com.

About The Hotline & National Journal Group: The Hotline is National Journal's daily
briefing on politics. National Journal Group Inc. is a leading publisher of magazines,
newsletters, books and directories for people who have a professional interest in politics,
policy and government. Based in Washington, D.C., National Journal Group Inc. is committed
to providing publications and services that are non-partisan, reliable and of the highest
quality. www.nationaljournal.com.

About FD: One of the most highly regarded consultancies in the communications industry,
FD employs more than 660 staff and advises more than 900 clients worldwide through its hub
offices in London and New York, as well as its network of wholly-owned offices in Bahrain,
Beijing, Bogota, Boston, Cape Town, Chicago, Dubai, Dublin, Frankfurt, Hong Kong,
Johannesburg, Los Angeles, Manchester, Moscow, Panama City, Paris, San Francisco,
Shanghai, Sydney and Washington, DC. With a 20 year history of advising clients in both the
private and public sectors, FD's services include financial public relations, capital markets
communications, public affairs, crisis and issues management and corporate, business-to-
business and business-to-consumer communications. FD is also a market leader in M&A
advisory work. FD is structured around specialist sector teams operating on an international
basis, covering consumer industries, financial services, basic industries, business services,
life sciences & healthcare, media, real estate, technology and telecommunications. FD is a
division of FTI Consulting Inc. (NYSE: FCN), the global business advisory firm. For more
information, please visit www.fd.com.
About FTI Consulting: FTI Consulting, Inc. is a global business advisory firm dedicated to
helping organizations protect and enhance enterprise value in an increasingly complex legal,
regulatory and economic environment. With more than 2,400 professionals located in most
major business centers in the world, we work closely with clients every day to anticipate,
illuminate, and overcome complex business challenges in areas such as investigations,
litigation, mergers and acquisitions, regulatory issues, reputation management and
restructuring. www.fticonsulting.com.