Our View: Super Bowl advertising continues to contradict
It’s no secret that the Super Bowl serves as a prime outlet for corporate advertising, as viewers often discuss commercials that air on social media almost as much as the game itself.
It’s also well-known by now that these advertisements as of late clamor for emotional appeals to viewers. Take, for instance, Budweiser commercials that attempt to create a heartwarming aura surrounding a puppy that journeys across busy roads and fields to find its home. The company even tries to relate this puppy to Clydesdale horses, an advertising stamp for Budweiser, with the hashtag #BestBuds.
However, all of the hype surrounding advertising for the Super Bowl generates more emotion than just a glint of happiness: Frustration with how contradictory commercials during one of the year’s biggest event have truly become, particularly when looking at alcohol advertisements.
Even from the biggest — and cleverest — advertisers during this game, there exists an immense contradiction. We can’t take away how cute the puppy Budweiser flashes on our screens is, and subsequently, we can’t ignore how smart this campaign is. What we can point out, however, is that alcohol companies that advertise in the Super Bowl and similar games are ignoring the fact that the league continues to deal with and stress drug policy matters.
Commissioner Roger Goodell dealt Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay —who watched his team make the AFC Championship game just weeks ago— a six-week suspension and a $500,000 fine for a DUI charge over the summer. According to sbnation.com, the most recent update to the league’s drug policy indicated that first-time DUI offenders receive a two-game ban, while the next offense increases the suspensions to an eight-game suspension.
We continue to ignore this contradiction and perhaps with good reason. After all, some of these players participated in the most special game of their lives, entertainment icon Katy Perry performed at halftime and we got another look at “Jurassic World”, among other things. With that said, there still exists a rift between the most common advertisements we see on television and the issue the league continues to deal with.
While we wouldn’t mind the cute puppy every year, we are calling for more consistency between issues the NFL deals with and what we see throughout the game. The only way to take the league’s attempt to diminish its problem is to stop seeing the culprit seep its way into the broadcasts.