Superbowl Ad Will Be Anti-Choice

Focus on the Family is a conservative pro-life, anti-birth control, anti-sex education, anti-gay organisation.

In spite of CBS’s rule on no advocacy in advertising, they have given approval for a 30 second advertisement to be played during the Superbowl tomorrow (February 7), a tv slot that will have up to 100 million viewers.

CBS executives approved a script for a Super Bowl spot from evangelical group Focus on the Family, which suggests the ad will not carry a pro-life message — at least an overt one.

The network has a policy of prohibiting advocacy ads, even ones that carry an “implicit” endorsement for a side in a public debate. A CBS spokesman did say the network will review the video version of the spot before giving it the final green light, but does not anticipate any hurdles.

NARAL Pro-Choice has started a campaign to get people to Focus On Something Else. They have made suggestions on ways to support this campaign through Facebook and Twitter.

I am the kind of person who gets nervous when I see prescription ads in American tv and magazines. I don’t like the manipulation that goes on which makes people think they should take a specific drug simply because they have better marketing campaigns.

It is this same manipulation that bothers me about this ad. I worry that this will give people the wrong impression of this organisation. If they were to be transparent and say outright that they are anti-choice then I would be fine with the idea.

But Focus on the Family and other anti-choice organisation have misleading campaigns. They often claim to help women make decisions about unwanted pregnancies when they are anti-choice all along. They often manipulate women into making choices that are not right for them and their families.

I’m fine with Focus on the Family having advertising, so long as they are open about their position and the purpose of their ad. I highly doubt that this will happen and I certainly hope this isn’t the beginning of a new trend in tv advertising.