CBS May Not Run MoveOn Superbowl Ad...

[Lisa0825]

http://www.adage.com/news.cms?newsId=39555#

ANTI-BUSH AD CONTEST SUBMITS SUPER BOWL COMMERCIAL
Spot Produced By a Leo Burnett Creative Director on His Own Time
January 13, 2004
QwikFIND ID: AAP28Q
By Ira Teinowitz

WASHINGTON (AdAge.com) -- Liberal activist group MoveOn.org announced it has chosen an anti-President Bush ad to air ahead of next week's "State of the Union" address and said it is negotiating with CBS to gain airtime on the Super Bowl.

< snip >

A spokesman for CBS said the Viacom-owned network has received the request from MoveOn to run the ad in the Super Bowl, but added that the ad has to go through standards and practices before CBS will say if it can run an advocacy ad during the game. The spokesman said he didn't think it was likely that the spot would pass standards and practices.


(end of clip)

I hope it gets on the superbowl!!! I'll be writing CBS a nastygram if not!

(edited to add contact info)

CBS Television Network
51 West 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019

Main Number:
[phone]

Or go to http://www.cbs.com and scroll to the bottom for the feedback link.

[Gato Moteado]

1. what standards and practices?

this is fascism.

[YNGW]

20. what standards and practices?

They're probably debating whether or not they want to mix sports (non-political) and politics. I don't recall ever seeing a political commercial during a Super Bowl game. Everyone's going to only remember the beer commercials anyway.

[ClintonTyree]

24. We can promote..............

alcohol that is quite often abused. THAT will pass standards and practices. Political ads.........never!

[YNGW]

27. Well..

... I've just never seen a political Super Bowl commercial. Is that something they want to mix? A lot of people watch sports because it *does* give them a break from everyday life, including politics, and sometimes *especially* politics.

And then there's the question of which corporation would want to precede or follow such a commercial. They could have trouble selling the slot, maybe??

[Terwilliger]

30. never seen a political Super Bowl commercial?

Didn't you watch last year when the drug ads ran that compared smoking pot to terrorism?

[YNGW]

43. Let me rephrase...

In the Super Bowl commercial lineup, I don't recall seeing a political commercial attacking a particular candidate.

One would have thought the topic being discussed would have made that clear. I see things needed to be narrowed.

And it still begs the question of who would want to have their commercial precede and/or follow the moveon.org ad?

[GreenPartyVoter]

42. Are there beer, boobs, and buttcheeks inthe MoveOn ad?

Cause if there are, it's a shoo-in. Those are the standards to which all ads are held, ya know.

[MasonJar]

21. I just wrote them a threatening feedback. n/t

[Stephanie]

2. That's it

We've lost out country. I'm glad my grandfather can't see this.

[Rainbowreflect]

3. Maybe we should all boycott CBS if the boycott MoveOn.

Just a thought. They had no problem running the "if you do drugs you support terrorism" ads last year.

[Terwilliger]

15. and just who thinks that will make ONE IOTA of difference?

really

[WhoCountsTheVotes]

4. Corporate Media is not "Free Press"

no matter how much they say it. They wouldn't let Adbusters run Buy Nothing Day at all - regardless of how much money they paid.

[DoYouEverWonder]

5. Does that mean they won't

run any Repug ads either?

I hope MoveOn gets a lot more free publicity from this nonsense.

[pmbryant]

6. Figures

I should have seen this coming. Silly me. :crazy:

--Peter

[LoZoccolo]

7. When they cancelled the Reagan movie I sent them a three-word letter.

"Chickenshit Broadcasting System."

[cthrumatrix]

8. CNN can run Hitler-Bush 80 times

[leftchick]

9. Promoting boozing it up is better S&P criteria?

Think of all the freakin Bud adds over the years. God bless Nazi Murica. Keep them drunk and stupid..... :grr:

[Sophree]

34. We must not criticize Der Feuhrer.

Especially not in front of the Bread and Circuses crowd. :grr:

[bluestateguy]

10. They are cowards

I'm more angry at them than I am at the RNC for the who Reagan movie thing. They are spineless, gutless cowards.

[Lisa0825]

11. Want to send feedback?

CBS Television Network
51 West 52nd Street
New York, NY 10019

Main Number:
[phone]

Or go to http://www.cbs.com and scroll to the bottom for the feedback link.

[ThomWV]

12. And At That Moment

When they say no I will block the channel. I will write letters to the major advertisers during their prime time (I'll watch and write down names) telling them I am boycotting their products because of their support of the network with advertising dollars. Then I do exactly what I told them I would do. I do not care if I am the only person in the country to do this, but it is what I will do.

Thom

[beyurslf]

13. Sent them a request

asking that ads be aired regardless of whether CBS agreed with the content. Urged them to respect the 1st Ammendment.

[xray s]

14. More publicity

"The ad they don't want you to see"

This stuff is priceless.

[nostamj]

22. yup!

ding ding ding

somebody is finally thinking like Rove!! if they say no, it will be seen everywhere. look what happened last night on MSNBC with symbolman. Child's Pay and One Man Army were seen uninterrupted.

if CBS thinks like Rove, they'll take the press for being the first network to air the commericial

[MoonAndSun]

16. I just sent my e-mail to CBS telling them that if they do not run

the moveon.org ad, then they will have surpassed their cowardice in not showing The Reagans.

[Fleshdancer]

17. And what are these "standards and practices"?

Have political ads never been ran during the Super bowl before?

I know issue ads have. Anyone else remember those ridiculous "if you buy drugs, you help the terrorists win" ads?? I'm pretty sure the first time I saw this was during the Super bowl.

Saying that the current tax cuts will be paid by future generations isn't exactly a controversial statement.

[Fridays Child]

18. Just emailed the following to CBS...

If, after evaluating the MoveOn.org ad, you decide not to run it, I hope that you will publish your "Standards and Practices," and cite the specific criteria which the ad fails to meet. Otherwise, your decision may be widely condemned as hostile to the First Amendment.

[dmr]

25. I'd like to know that answer too, here's some info I Googled-up:

- snip -

Critics contend, with some justification, that standards and practices is anachronistic paternalism at best, and most often a form of censorship; the networks claim the publisher's right to exercise their judgment as to what is appropriate for broadcast to the American public. The affiliated stations sometimes complain but are generally, though not always, satisfied that the network are sufficiently vigilant as their surrogates. Network and sales executives worry that the very process of vetting leads to pettifoggery and rigidity. Advertisers rail at the scrupulous insistence that all claims be substantiated, as the law requires. By far the most frequent complaints, however, are heard from the creative community which argues that the networks are too accommodating of the most conservative members of the audience and that only by "pushing the envelope" with respect to sex, violence, or language, can the medium advance.

Standards and Practices' primary purpose has always been to maintain the networks' most precious asset, its audience-in-being -- the delivery of a significant share of television households, hour after hour, to the advertising community. Secondary purposes historically, have included protecting the networks' images as responsible and responsive institutions, as sources of reliable information and satisfying entertainment for the entire family, and even as precious national resources. In the final analysis, if the concern for not giving offense has contributed to blandness, it must also be credited for making a commercially supported national system possible.


http://www.museum.tv/archives/etv/S/htmlS/standardsand/standardsand.htm

[Mechatanketra]

40. Notice the subtle truth buried within that passage ...

Standards and Practices' primary purpose has always been to maintain the networks' most precious asset, its audience-in-being -- the delivery of a significant share of television households, hour after hour, to the advertising community. (Emphasis mine)

That's the modern media in a nutshell. Ever wonder why television does apparently things like can their highest-rated shows for ones that are cheaper to produce (Sci-Fi axing Farscape)or more conservatively slanted (MSNBC axing Donahue)? Or why there are so few liberal pundits with national exposure to match a Rush Limbaugh or O'Reilly, when a majority of the country leans much more left than the neo-con talking heads? It's because ratings (or even an exact tally of audience size) are only an indirect measure of success -- the one thing most people need to grasp about television and radio, practically stated outright in that quote, is that the audience is not the customers ... they're the product. You (or your attention span) is being sold to someone else.

[Fleshdancer]

19. I guess money can buy everything but an opposing opinion these days.

sad. Could you imagine if the Club For Growth were denied an advertising spot?

[eissa]

23. Assholes

They ban the Reagan film AND the democratic ad?! Hhhmmmmmm

[BigDaddyLove]

26. I have serious doubts that MoveOn actually planned on........

running the ad during the Superbowl anyway.....how in the world could they afford to? Aren't the numbers like $5 million per 30 second slot or something outrageous like that?

My feeling is that they just want CBS to say 'no' so they can get more free publicity for themselves and the ad......a tactic I agree with by the way.

[Imalittleteapot]

28. MoveOn.org has money but

needs more. They've raised $8,120,158.47. Their goal is $10,000,000.

You can contribute at:
http://www.moveonvoterfund.org/donate/creditcard.html

[BigDaddyLove]

31. I understand that MoveOn has money............

but my point was, why spend it all (or almost all) on a one shot deal?

I think they are smarter than that, and will spread out the money they do have to do more than just get one spot on the air one time. Ever since the 'Hitler-Bush' thing hit, they have gotten more publicity than they could ever possibly outright buy, and I think this is another ploy to get even more notoriety.

[jayfish]

44. Remember The Apple Commercial?

It was a one shot deal to and is now regarded as one of the greatest and most memorable commercials of all time. On a side note: A political ad cannot pass "standards and practices" but the ultra-gore given on CSI & CSI Miami every week does? It's not the action that causes harm, it's the thought truly damages. Amazing!

Jay

[nostamj]

29. cost of ad is 1.6M

best thing that could happen is they refuse.

they'll get 10.6M in free exposure and EVERYONE will see the ad. many many times.

[BigDaddyLove]

32. That is EXACTLY what I mean.

.

[kentuck]

33. They are trying to suck more money out of them....

They will say that others are willing to pay more for the spot. The truth is that they are running scared. Other advertisers have probably said they will pull their ads if MoveOn.org is run??

[BigDaddyLove]

35. I don't know.........

I mean with regard to your first point, it seems that advertisers will pay almost any price to get on during the Superbowl.

Running scared? Maybe, but again, the Superbowl slots are THE place to be, and I just can't see a PepsiCo or a Budweiser running away from that stage.

I could be wrong however.

[ThomWV]

36. Panty Liners Are OK But Anti Bush Ads Are Not?

I swear to Christ. Some of the most offensive crap immaginable is advertised on TV today, and you want to tell me they have standards?

Panty Liners
Hemroid Medications
Laxatives
Feminine Deodorant Sprays
Viagra
And one and on and on

[Sterling]

37. Try this # for CBS .

212-975-3291

It is supposedly the correct dept.

[SoCalDem]

38. So much for "the public owns the airwaves"..

But what could we expect from a bunch of cowards?

They try so hard "not to offend", that they end up offending EVERYONE :)

[Nazgul35]

39. I took alot of heat from...

many here on DU for trying to encourage a protest for the Reagan movie....

the most common smack-down used against me was that this is small potatoes....we shouldn't waste our time

So now it's my chance to say I told you so!!!!

How do you all think they right wingers are soooo successful? They push back on the small nonsense stuff sooo hard that when things really matter, the big whigs think to themselves.... if they freaked out over this.....my good, what will they do if we do this really important thing?!

So...a big thank you to all those sages out there who laughed at those of us who wanted to protest the Reagan movie pulling.....I hoped you all learned your lesson now!!! When we really need to get something on, they look back at the anemic response and the right wingers overwhelming response......what would you do in their place?! Try to imagine not having a spine and in pursuit of the almighty dollar.....

So let's put to rest once and for all this nonsense that there are protests too small to spend our time on God Dammit!!!!!!

[ElementaryPenguin]

41. I practically threatened them with my email!

thanks! :mad: