Every year I have to share my birthday (or birthday weekend) with one of the most celebrated all-American, largely masculine events of the year – the Super Bowl. Not one for touchdowns and injuries, I typically join in the social aspect of the event and enjoy the commercials that cost a fortune and captivate us all.
And while we’re not here to debate whether this year’s selections were a hit or a flop, I was intrigued by DiversityInc.’s article about one ad that was left out of the collection. Reporting off a longer story from 365gay.com, DiversityInc. examined how GetToKnowUsFirst.org, an LGBT advocacy group in California, was unable to air its commercial featuring an African-American gay couple during the Big Game on KNBC-TV in Los Angeles. The same ad was rejected for inclusion during the inauguration ceremonies weeks earlier by California’s KABC-TV.
KNBC-TV cited the National Football League’s recommendation to exclude the ad because it fell into the “advocacy” category. Fair enough and understandable – until ads aired for TobaccoFreeCA.org and DontBeAnAsterisk.org, an anti-steroids advocacy campaign.
As Ben called out last week in a post about Olympic greats Phelps and Mitcham, there seem to be double standards surrounding LGBT sponsorships and communications. While a policy against advocacy ads by the NFL is legitimate and appropriate, the League and KNBC’s actions communicated something entirely different to the community. It is an important element of communication – to gays and lesbians or any other audience – that is occasionally overlooked. Your message is only as strong as the actions that follow.
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