AD WATCH / The Mayoral Race : Riordan’s Record at Mattel

Los Angeles mayoral candidate Richard Riordan has begun a new TV ad accusing opponent Michael Woo of distorting the businessman’s record with Mattel.

* THE AD: The ad opens with the title: “An open letter to Michael Woo from the Mattel Corp.” A narrator reads, “We at Mattel Toys take great exception to your current television advertising, which is patently false and deceptive. Your charges are an affront to the 1,600 Mattel employees who are based in Southern California. We take no position with regard to the mayoral race.” The only reference to Riordan appears at the end, with the required notice, “Paid for by Riordan for mayor.”

* THE ANALYSIS: Woo has accused Riordan of doing away with 1,300 jobs at Mattel, sending some of them to Mexico. Mattel’s records show that while Riordan served on the board the toy company reduced its worldwide work force by 2,500. Mattel officials say they eliminated about 800 jobs in Southern California while Riordan was on the board. But some additional jobs apparently were created elsewhere in the United States; Mattel reported an overall U.S. work force drop of only 600 during the Riordan years. Although Mattel claims to have taken no position on the mayoral race, the toy company and its chairman contributed to Riordan’s campaign. A company spokesman said a contribution was also recently sent to Woo.