US presidential candidates John McCain and Barack Obama have unmasked their favourite pop culture icons, including superheroes, with McCain favouring Batman and Obama choosing Spider-Man and Batman. In interviews with Entertainment Weekly magazine posted on its website on Thursday, Mr McCain, 71, and Mr Obama, 47, also gave their picks for best on-screen president, top singers and most-liked television shows.

Mr Obama, a Democratic senator from Illinois, said he chose Spider-Man and Batman because "they have some inner turmoil." Mr McCain, a Republican senator from Arizona, said Batman is a quiet hero who pursues justice "against insurmountable odds".

Both chose a winner. The new Batman movie The Dark Knight is burning up box offices with earnings of more than $400 million in US and Canadian ticket sales.

In the world of music, Mr McCain revealed a weakness for the Swedish disco-era band Abba, late singer Roy Orbison and 1970s star Linda Ronstadt.

"But I like Usher too," Mr McCain said, explaining that he appeared on the TV comedy show Saturday Night Live with the 29-year-old rhythm and blues singer.

Mr Obama favoured an eclectic group of musicians, including Frank Sinatra, Bob Dylan, Sheryl Crow and John Coltrane.

As for TV, Obama listed throwback programs like M*A*S*H and The Dick Van Dyke Show, while Mr McCain named the more recent Seinfeld, Curb Your Enthusiasm and Dexter.

Mr Obama also proved a little behind the times on the last movie seen in a theatre, which for him was the 2007 animated film Shrek the Third. Mr McCain said he had seen the blockbuster hit Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, which debuted in May.

"I enjoyed that so much. The old guy wins," said Mr McCain, who has been the butt of jokes because of his age.

One person poking fun at him has been Paris Hilton, the 27-year-old actress, singer and socialite, who called Mr McCain a "wrinkly white-haired guy" in a web video posted this week.