By Susan Brinkmann, OCDS
Staff Writer
Citing a policy not to run ads involving “political advocacy or issues,” NBC has rejected a powerful pro-life ad for the Super Bowl.
The ad is a 30-second television spot created by CatholicVote.org and financed by The Fidelis Center for Law & Policy. Called “Life: Imagine the Potential” it features an unborn child in the womb whose father left him and whose mother raised him alone. In the end, the child turns out to be Barack Obama.
The ad originally ran on the Internet and on BET (Black Entertainment Television) in the city of Chicago on election day. The campaign is focused on reaching out to Americans who are either indifferent about abortion or who have never considered the great potential of each and every human life.
Running an ad during the Super Bowl would have been a coup d’etat for the group but the liberal-leaning NBC refused to air it.
Brian Burch, president of CatholicVote, told OneNewsNow that his organization signed a contract with NBC to air the spot. They were extremely happy, “Until we were informed that NBC, in conjunction with the NFL, was rejecting our ad because it was a political or issue ad,” Burch states, “and they said they have a policy against it.”
However, Burch points out that NBC also rejected a controversial ad from another advocacy group – PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) – but not because of its “no advocacy ads” policy. The PETA ad was rejected because of its sexual content. This indicates an inconsistency in NBC’s application of the policy.
“There’s no doubt that PETA is an advocacy group,” argues Burch. “NBC rejected PETA’s ad for another reason altogether. Our ad is far less provocative, and hardly controversial by comparison.”
He respects NBC’s decision but says his group’s pro-life ad is not divisive or confrontational and is not really political. It simply asks people to imagine the potential of every human life.
To view the ad, visit www.CatholicVote.org
© All Rights Reserved, Living His Life Abundantly/Women of Grace. http://www.womenofgrace.com
