In an NFL year full of protests, pardon requests, and a new anthem policy, Super Bowl advertisers are staying away from politics.
Super Bowl LIII will feature the usual onslaught of multi-million dollar advertisements, but the content hopes to serve as entertainment and distraction rather than a statement on the nation's political climate, reports The Associated Press.
"The big theme is a return to light-hearted humor," University of Virginia professor Kim Whitler told AP. "There's an acknowledgement the Super Bowl is about entertainment."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Budweiser drew ire in 2017 after running an ad deemed overtly political and pro-immigration by some critics. Anheuser-Busch InBev, Budweiser's parent company, bought 5 1/2 minutes of air time for seven of its brands this year, but none of its ads will be political, per Business Insider. "We will only talk about or engage in topics that are authentic to our brands or company," a company spokesman told Business Insider.
The NFL has come under more scrutiny for its politics over the past year. The Philadelphia Eagles, last year's Super Bowl champions, were disinvited by President Trump to the White House due to their players kneeling during the national anthem in protest of police brutality. The NFL and CBS originally approached Rihanna to headline Super Bowl LIII's halftime show, but she declined in support of Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback who initiated protesting during the national anthem.
Rather than come anywhere near these controversies, advertisers are reportedly banking on celebrities like Steve Carell and Jeff Bridges to spice up "product-focused" ads. As brand management expert Kelly O'Keefe told AP, "It will be a lackluster year."
-
'Actual poop' – the messy ending of 'And Just Like That...'Talking Point Reviewers slam 'unfunny and hateful' finale to 'Sex and the City' reboot
-
'Animal Farm' at 80: Orwell's parable remains 'horribly' relevantTalking Point George Orwell's warnings about authoritarianism and manipulation have been weaponised across the political spectrum
-
Will Ukraine trade territory for peace?TODAY'S BIG QUESTION Kyiv’s defences are wearing thin but a land swap is constitutionally impossible and crosses Zelenskyy's red lines
-
Trump orders NFL team to change name, or elseSpeed Read The president wants the Washington Commanders to change its name back to the 'Redskins'
-
Thunder beat Pacers to clinch NBA FinalsSpeed Read Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Indiana Pacers in Game 7 of the NBA Finals
-
Why is the NFL considering banning the 'tush push' play?Today's Big Question The play is widely used by the Philadelphia Eagles, to other teams' chagrin
-
MLB lifts ban on Pete Rose, other dead playersspeed read 16 deceased players banned for gambling and other scandals can now be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame
-
Canada beats US in charged 4 Nations hockey finalSpeed Read 'You can't take our country — and you can't take our game,' Prime Minister Justin Trudeau posted after the game
-
Eagles trounce Chiefs in Super Bowl LIXspeed read The Philadelphia Eagles beat the Kansas City Chiefs 40-22
-
Indian teen is youngest world chess championSpeed Read Gukesh Dommaraju, 18, unseated China's Ding Liren
-
Europe roiled by attacks on Israeli soccer fansSpeed Read Israeli fans supporting the Maccabi Tel Aviv team clashed with pro-Palestinian protesters in 'antisemitic attacks,' Dutch authorities said
