STORY BY SARAH GROSSMAN
So, the Super Bowl happened, and while I can honestly say that I did watch some of it and thought the ending was worth everyone’s undivided attention, I think that there is another aspect completely worthy of discussion (beyond “left shark” that is): the commercials.
Highly discussed every year, almost as much as the game itself, commercials provide a whole extra level of entertainment value, even beyond halftime show wardrobe malfunctions.
This year’s commercials were no different, because despite the somewhat concerning and confusing commercials where there were half-naked women — the only one that made sense this year was the Victoria’s Secret commercial, kudos to them — the commercials were rather intense.
Two PSAs that caused particular conversation were Nationwide’s commercial about fatal child accidents and the NFL’s domestic violence campaign, “No More.”
For those of you who may have missed it, Nationwide featured a child doing some pretty nifty activities, sailing, getting married and so forth, then led on to explain that the child would do none of these because he was dead. Morbid right?
Well, many viewers thought so also. Some complained that this disrupted the excited environment of the Super Bowl.
I’m sorry, what? Approximately every three weeks, a child dies from a television falling on them, sorry you were inconvenienced with such a PSA about preventable accidents.
But wait, I’m not sorry. Not at all.
Nationwide released a statement the next day explaining that the commercial was created for shock value, and they recognized that there might be adverse reactions.
They also stated that they had succeeded with their goal. Views of their website for child safety, makesafehappen.com, increased significantly. So in simplistic terms, people might have been “inconvenienced,” but a positive change and greater education did occur.
Next, let’s discuss the NFL’s campaign “No More” and the commercial that occurred as a result.
This commercial featured a recorded call (one that actually occurred) of a woman contacting the police pretending it was a pizza company. This was clever, but also a little sad.
One might wonder why the NFL thought this was necessary, but not really.
For instance, football is typically seen as a male’s sport, and considering there is no league for women to play professionally, I have to agree.
It may be interesting that the NFL would create a campaign for an issue that more often than not is considered a “womanly issue,” but, again, that is not true.
Domestic violence accounts for 48 percent of arrests for NFL players, and 21 out of the 32 teams hired someone this year with a charge of sexual assault or domestic violence.
But, no worries, the NFL takes action about these things. For instance, a player, Ray Rice, who knocked out his fiancée, now wife, was suspended for two whole weeks.
Wow, two whole weeks? Sounds like a great time to take an exotic vacation.
So, basically what I am saying is, thank you NFL for taking a stand on something you obviously have a problem with.
Cleaning up your own mess is always appreciated.
But, nonetheless, it was an important commercial, and the NFL had to do something about all the poor media attention it is receiving. It was a semi-decent effort.
These commercials were sad, real and had absolutely no naked women in sight (bummer).
But, they were necessary. The Super Bowl reaches an incredibly large audience, approximately 114 million viewers.
This is the ideal time for those hoping to spread a message.
While “Left Shark” was undoubtedly the MVP, let’s not forget the real reason most of us watch: the commercials.
So, thank goodness a few brave men and women were willing to make them worth watching this year, even if it was “inconvenient.”
