Super Bowl Ads 2007 – Safe for Family Viewing?

By: American Decency Staff

The consensus seems to be in the secular media that the 2007 Super Bowl ads were disappointing duds. From an entertainment value, that may be correct. But how about from a decency standpoint? Compared to years past, there were fewer sexually explicit ads during the Super Bowl. However, during this night of prime-time family viewing, there certainly were several ads not fit for family consumption.

Listed below are the most egregious. Snickers candy bars – The most disgusting ad of the night. Two mechanics are shown working under the hood of a car. One takes out a Snickers and sticks one end of the candy bar in his mouth. The other mechanic leans over and begins eating the Snickers from the other end. The two meet in the middle and the image gives the illusion of an erotic kiss between the two men. In the version aired during the Super Bowl, the two men are disgusted that they had kissed and counteract it by doing something “manly”. In an alternative ending to the ad, not shown last night but available on Snickers’ web site, a third mechanic comes up after the “kiss” and suggests group, male sex. Stating: “Is there room for three on this love boat?” I’m guessing homosexual groups will criticize the Snickers ad for, as described by Newsweek, “vaguely homophobic” undertones. However, those of us concerned about standards of decency should hold Snickers responsible for using such disgusting imagery and sexual innuendo and doing so when millions of families are watching. GoDaddy.com – Another ad using sex to sell is GoDaddy.com. This corporation has made it a practice the last few years of airing Super Bowl ads featuring tasteless, highly erotic displays of barely clad women. Their ads blatantly advertise nothing about their product, but Go Daddy must hope viewers will remember the company by associating it with their sexual ads. This is how Newsweek described the GoDaddy ad: “Another crass, stupid ad featuring juggy women spraying each other with champagne. The intellectual basis for these ads seems to be that men like [breasts]. Basically, this is a company that thinks so little of its clientele that it believes our loyalty can be bought with nothing more than a flash of cleavage. Enough already.” And a blog on MSNBC had this sarcastic reply to the ad: “Yeah, no women watch the Super Bowl, or use your Web site, whatever it is. Don’t worry, we’re not in the least bit offended when we’re shown as being sprayed down with hoses for the enjoyment of men. Keep right on appealing to the brain-free. What did Bill Cosby have his characters say? ‘Russell, you’re like school in summer. No class’.” Chevrolet – went from a wholesome, all-American ad during the first quarter to a vulgar, sexualized ad during the second. This ad featured two women in a Chevy vehicle stopped at a city traffic signal. A supposed bum comes up to wipe off the car, and when the female driver rolls down her window to give him some cash, he takes it in his teeth aka a male stripper, and begins taking off his clothes. Suddenly dozens of men surround the car, stripping and moving erotically. Several disgusting shots are shown of men in bikini underwear.

Let these three corporations hear from you of your disgust with their vulgar marketing ploys. Let them know you don’t appreciate the fact that they chose to air such crude, sexualized ads during a time when millions of families are watching, exposing the young and impressionable to indecent themes and images. Contact: Mars Incorporated – Snickers Paul S. Michaels – President 6885 Elm St. McLean, VA 22101 Phone: 703-821-4900 Fax: 703-448-9678 Email: http://www.snickers.com/contact.asp; The Go Daddy Group, Inc. Robert R. Parsons – Chairman and CEO 14455 N. Hayden Rd., Ste. 219 Scottsdale, AZ 85260-6947 Phone: 480-505-8800 Fax: 480-505-8844 Email: press@godaddy.com; General Motors Corporation – Chevrolet G. Richard Wagoner Jr. – Chairman and CEO 300 Renaissance Center Detroit, MI 48265-3000 Phone: 313-556-5000 Fax: 313-556-5108 Email: http://www.gm.com/gmcomjsp/contactus/contact_us_form.jsp

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