CBS REJECTS ANTI-BUSH SUPER BOWL COMMERCIAL

Ad Age ^ | January 15, 2004 | Ira Teinowitz

[Prodigal Son]

WASHINGTON (AdAge.com) -- Viacom's CBS today rejected a request from liberal group MoveOn to air a 30-second anti-President Bush ad during the Super Bowl, saying the spot violated the network's policy against running issue advocacy advertising.

Network policy A CBS spokesman said the decision against broadcasting the spot had nothing to do with either the Super Bowl or the ad's specific issue but was because the network has had a long-term policy not to air issue ads anywhere on the network.

A MoveOn spokesperson said the group hopes to appeal the decision within CBS.

Produced as a personal project by Charlie Fisher, creative director of the Copenhagen, Denmark, office of Publicis Groupe ad agency Leo Burnett, the spot is critical of the Bush administration's fiscal policies.

Anti-Bush contest MoveOn is airing a 60-second version the commercial, which was selected through a contest calling for anti-Bush ads, in advance of President Bush's State of the Union address Jan. 20. The group has purchased $300,000 worth of air time on Time Warner's CNN that starts Jan. 17 and runs through Jan. 21.

[onyx]

Betcha Dan Blather is not happy.

I didn't think of that! Betcha you're right! LOL.

[Jinjelsnaps]

must be that VAST RIGHT-WING CONSPIRACY at work yet again...couldn't be that the ad was horrible, in bad taste and just plain salacious...could it?

[oceanview]

CBS's decision aside, don't downplay the effect of these ads on voters. way too many freepers strutting around as if this election is going to be a landslide, it isn't.

[optimistically_conservative]

"It would have no effect except to make millions of people hate the left ..."

Ergo SeeBS's decision.

[Revolting cat!]

They'll run it some other time. And given that the deficit question, may in fact look and sound perfectly reasonable, the over-the-top Hitler ad would have been better from our point of view.

[longtermmemmory]

Could CBS have learned something from "thereagans"?

[Alas Babylon!]

I do not like the huge deficit either but a lot of the money is going towards fighting an ongoing war. Be that as it may, we didn't need a perscription drug benefit.

Having said that, the Democrats said throughout the 80's and early 90's that Reagan's deficit would last generations as well, but it dwindled after the Republicans got control of Congress. Let's give this one a little time to see if an improving economy can shorten it. Still, no new social spending, please, Mr. President!

[CyberAnt]

That's what I was thinking.

[BJClinton]

I would love for them to run those ads. I believe the lefties attempts to compare Bush and Hitler are doing more than anything to move voters our way.

[CyberAnt]

Geeeee .. I'm hurt .. didn't they like receiving our emails ..??

[BJClinton]

$2.4 million per 30-second block this year.

[woofer]

The Demlibs are desperate

Over at the DUmp, their talkin' "boycott!" and trashing that Right Wing, Fox News wannabe CBS outfit.

I wish 'em the best of luck, they don't seem like the bunch that could organize their way out of a wet paper bag.

[PhiKapMom]

This about makes me faint! I figured that the ads would be a shoe-in for CBS although maybe the people at CBS Sports think different then the CBS News folks! I can only imagine the uproar this would have caused during the Super Bowl if they had run the ads.

[PhiKapMom]

I love it when flyover country gets to Championships -- drives the networks nuts.

[Unam Sanctam]

Either they allow all issue advocacy ads or none at all. As long as they are fair, I don't care which.

[InvisibleChurch]

they'll save the anti-w for cbs eve news

[avital2]

isn't soros running ads on CNN preaching to the choir?

[wardaddy]

Poor Soros.

Thanks CBS....(did I say that?)

[Happy2BMe]

"A MoveOn spokesperson said the group hopes to appeal the decision within CBS."

Hasn't anyone told these people Saddma no longer works for CBS?

[CFC__VRWC]

It takes more than a couple million for 30 seconds. I say, let them spend it. As fast as they can. They'll be broke by April.

If only it were true. George Soros is bankrolling these loons, and to him, a couple of mil is like the change we find under the sofa cushions.