NewsChannel 5 Investigates: You Paid For It! (TN) Taxpayer money buys bobbleheads

WTVF-TV/DT Nashville ^ | 4.24.03

[mhking]

NewsChannel 5 Investigates:
You Paid For It!
Taxpayer money buys bobbleheads
(Original Date: Apr. 24, 2003)

It's money that supposed to be used to save lives on Tennessee highways.

In recent years, the federal government has pumped millions of dollars into highway safety advertising in Tennessee

The goal: to combat images of death and destruction on the highways with eye-opening images like those from the highly acclaimed, "Booze It & Lose It" campaign

But that money also bought bobbleheads.

"I bought a bobblehead?" asks one taxpayer.

"Taxpayers' money?" another asks.

It's all part of a campaign aimed at Nashville Predators' fans. The state not only paid for advertising in the arena.

But 10,000 Preds fans also received Scott Hartnell Bobbleheads... at taxpayer expense.

Total cost: $40,000 dollars.

"This is advertising highway safety?" yet another taxpayer asks.

MTSU advertising professor Don Parente notes that the only message on the bobblehead - the name of the "Governor's Highway Safety Office" -- really isn't a message.

"I don't know there is a message," Parente says. "How is that getting people to buckle up? How is that getting people to stop driving while they are drinking?"

The new head of the Governor's Highway Safety Office responds, "Would that be the message that I would use, probably not."

He notes that the Bobblehead was supposed to carry the "Booze It & Lose It" logo -- under the contract signed by the previous administration. Then, the Predators balked.

"There was some concern because Scott was underage and using that particular 'Booze It & Lose It' tag really was not the correct one to use -- especially when you have a sponsor that is not able to drink."

But the state paid for the Bobbleheads anyway.

The state also paid for plastic fangs.

The cost: $22,000.

In addition, the state spent $100,000 to sponsor the Predators' Smashville season theme.

"Is that what they spent -- geez!" Parente exclaims.

The theme highlighted the players' reckless abandon in TV and radio ads.

"I just can't understand why a public safety program would want to associate with smashing things," the ad prof explains.

The state's contract with the Predators this past season was almost $600,000. The state has also has similar contracts with the Memphis Grizzlies, the Liberty Bowl and the state's minor league baseball teams.

. "There is a demographic out there that we are attempting to reach," Taylor says.

He adds that the Bredesen administration is reevaluating all these ad campaigns. But taxpayers say the message is clear:

"It gives me a message that I wasted my taxpayers money to do a bobblehead."

The Titans, by the way, did the seat belt campaign "Titan Up, Tennessee" for free

[mhking]

"Hold muh beer 'n watch this!" PING....

If you want on or off this list, please let me know!

[RichInOC]

If they were going to buy promotional toys, they could at least have tried to tie them in with the campaign...how about a "decapitated-accident-victim" bobblehead?

[GailA]

Today's Commie Appeaser has a story about the Med (regional Medical Hosp) maybe closing due to not getting funds for county and state. Yet we have plenty of money for bobbleheads. Oh, and $100,000+ trips to europe by spendquist.

[GailA]

IF memory serves Missippi owes th Med something like $17M, which we TN taxserfs had to pick up the tab for, for ER indigent care.

The Med may have to close

[JustPiper]

Six nights a week Joe Scraborough has "Capitol Offense", also check out his website at MSNBC. Tonight is Joe's first Sunday, he will be taking calls Freepers at 9pm CST!!!

[weegee]

The world's most famous talking bobblehead:

[Richard Kimball]

I still think those eyeballs are painted on his glasses, a la Percy Dovetonsils, and I also noticed that this was the state with the budget shortfall that was going to HAVE to have an income tax, because citizens were going to suffer horribly due to the lost revenue.

[skinkinthegrass]

the bobblehead are empty plastic shell...in this case, an vacuum.

[weegee]

There's a face I haven't seen in a long time. Percy drank marininis.

I don't know what Donawho's excuse is for the deer-in-the-headlights look. Maybe it's been so long since he opened his eyes to reality that he's gone to painting eyes on his eyelids.

[Bob Mc]

Government wasting our tax dollars to fund propaganda campaigns. Then, they can't even agree on what kind of propaganda to publish, so they end up essentially with a bunch of toys with no message. Probably are now giving them out as petty bribes and favors for their elitist friends. What a joke.

[ringgold]

This coming from the state who closed down the rest areas last year to save money!

[Blood of Tyrants]

What REALLY galls me is that our new Rat governor claims that he is doing everything to trim the budget. We currently have a law that grants illegal aliens driver's licenses. Efforts to repeal it have met with opposition from the governor's office. His reason is that the state can't afford the $150,000 it would lose in revenue from the renewal of the DL's for illegal aliens DESPITE THE FACT THAT NOT A SINGLE LICENSE HAS BEEN RENEWED YET! (Licenses are issued for 5 years and the law is only 2 years old.)