Washington Post TV columnist Tom Shales suggests in his Internet chat session today that the “sacred escapism” of the Super Bowl is violated by the sacred-life commercial with Tim Tebow. (We will allow that Shales is probably being facetious about the game):
Brooklyn, N.Y.: How do you feel about Tim Tebow’s anti-abortion ad that will air during the Super Bowl? The problem I have is that ad indicates that professional athletes’ lives are worth more than the rest of us. Tebow’s mother’s story isn’t unusual, except that she happened to give birth to a star athlete. Had she given birth to a janitor, the ad wouldn’t exist.
Tom Shales: I’m against it – which is easy to say, of course. I think that Ms Jackson’s malfunctioning wardrobe was enough of an intrusion into the sacred escapism of The Big Game — and to make it a bulletin board for posting advocacy messages seems like a big, big mistake. This is only one ad, but what does a network say to the next guy – the one who wants to air a pro-abortion rights ad, or an anti-gun or pro-gun ad, or a this or a that? They will kill the fun.
“Brooklyn” seems off to me. Tebow has yet to become a “professional athlete.” The ad does not state that his life is worth more than a janitor’s, even if famous athletes make better commercial pitchmen. It is designed to save future janitors … and geneticists … and TV critics.
Perhaps we should propose to Shales that a better spot for the Tebow ad could be opened up by having his “President Wonderful” take a two-minute break during one of his many free spots on network TV.