A COMMENT ABOUT THE TIM TEBOW COMMERCIAL…AND THEN SOME…
The following comes as a comment from a reader regarding my post “TIM TEBOW COMMERCIAL SLATED FOR AIRING ON SUNDAY IS NOT TRUTHFUL AND IS BRINGING THE IRE OF WOMEN ON CBS”. His/her points are well made. There are also two comments by “Maryfred” that are well-stated, but were slightly askew from the point I was attempting to make. Here is the comment from “triptotheouthouse” :
Actually, CBS rejected another gay-oriented ad this year. The puzzle is that they say they have changed their policy about what types of ads they will accept. I mention this because a few years ago, CBS rejected an ad by the United Church of Christ that showed their denominations acceptance of diversity. Now CBS is saying that had UCC asked to run that ad this year, they would been able to do so. Even more curious is that apparently CBS was directly involved in the production of the FoF ads. Yes, ads, because they now are going to air similar ones during the pre-game show. It doesn’t appear that it’s the money that’s gotten them to now accept cause-type advertising, as even before saying that they were running these additional FoF ads, they said their slots were full.
As for Dobson and FoF and other similar so-called christians, they are not content to just “believe whatever makes (them) comfortable”. They suck millions of dollars from their followers and use it to try to force changes in laws which directly affect the lives of so many others and takes away their rights to live and “believe in whatever way makes them comfortable”.
CBS has a right to air this ad, but they should offer the following time slot to Planned Parenthood.
I don’t see how anyone can argue with Tedbow’s mother’s decision not to have an abortion. Any one who is pro-choice, as I certainly am, would not offer any suggestion on whether or not she should have an abortion. It’s her decision and one we should all respect.
One has to remember that the Tebows were christian missionaries in a country that is 80% Catholic, the Philippines. They have the right to believe whatever they like, but the bottom line is their beliefs are narrow-minded, reactionary and exclusionary. They believe in the inerrancy of the Scriptures and disavow the “modern ecumenical movement”, which is about all you need to know about how they stand on matters of faith. They are blinded to the complexity of our world and society in general.
The FoF commercial today will reflect those beliefs and not respect those women whose pregnancy may be very “complicated” and anything but joyous. If they are going to run the ad then equal time should be given to Planned Parenthood. Better yet, it would be best to avoid this complicated and controversial topic and save it for a time when both sides could receive fair and truthful coverage.
This is all much ado about nothing. CBS chose to air an advertisement that takes an opinionated slant — so what? Focus on the Family paid the $2.3 million or so required to run the ad and were approved. If we’re getting worried about one or two other ads that weren’t approved, why don’t we review them all? There are likely hundreds of ads that have been turned down or didn’t get the spot they were shooting for — maybe they should all be treated fairly and aired.
Why would anyone advocate bumping someone else’s ad (that was already purchased) in order to offer rebuttal time? Coors doesn’t get to demand equal time with Budweiser … Pepsi doesn’t get to demand equal time with Coke. The time you get during the Super Bowl depends on how much money you’re willing to pay. And timing. Apologies to Planned Parenthood … maybe opining on their pro-choice beliefs should have been important to them before this controversy so they could have purchased air time when it was available.
And barring commercials with content that may offend some people’s delicate constitutions? Come on … I know a lot of people that find the Go Daddy ads racy and offensive, but ya know what? The world keeps spinning. I’m actually embarrassed that there will be thousands of people who watch the Super Bowl tonight simply so they can get outraged about this ad, trying to make something out of nothing. I haven’t seen the text or content of the ad — in fact, no one has — but based on the negativity surrounding it, I’m guess Tim Tebow is going to be waving a pocket watch back-and-forth, trying to hypnotize the viewers. Right?
If it’s even a fraction as “offensive and preachy” as it has been made out to be, I’ll be completely shocked.
Comment by Jesse Manning — 2/7/2010 @ 12:18 pm
I almost missed it, but they didn’t end up saying anything controversial, did they? Just go to a Web site to hear her story? I wonder if all the foolish speculation allowed them to recut the ad and not have to say anything controversial because everybody knew the story already. Focus on the Family might have to send a thank-you card to Gloria Allred.
Comment by kgaston — 2/8/2010 @ 11:14 am
The controversy surrounding this ad was one of the most overblown reactions I’ve seen from some on the left. If anyone found it offensive, they’re REALLY overreacting. Nothing about the ad itself was untruthful, dictated moral decisions to anyone, or had any reason to bring “the ire of women on CBS.”
I’m pretty amused that Gloria Allred would take issue with an ad that “fails to give all the relevant facts.” She obviously knows nothing about marketing.
Comment by Jesse Manning — 2/9/2010 @ 1:05 am
Well, there is the possibility that the ads might have been edited after all the controversy arose. As they were run, they were pointless. The controversy was addressed without running the ads.
Comment by Peg Britton — 2/9/2010 @ 9:54 am