This post has been crossposted to DovBear.
UPDATE: RETRACTION AND APOLOGY HERE
The most well-known athlete in America might be Tim Tebow.
Tebow is possibly the most celebrated, successful college football player of all time. He was a 2 time national champion with the Florida Gators and a Heisman Trophy winner. His success, as well as his good looks and supernatural physique has made him a household name across the United States. Oh, there is one more thing, Tebow is the son of missionaries who is very religious and (at this point) celibate.
Tebow has used his star power to advocate for Christianity. He spent a couple of summers working with missionaries in the Far East and has always been vocal about his religiousness. Tim Tebow is an athlete who is using his star power to make a difference in the world. We may not agree with his message, but he is certainly a better role model than felon Gilbert Arenas or even LeBron James.
During the upcoming Super Bowl, Tebow will be featured in a $2.6 Million ad for a strong Pro-Life Organization called Focus on the Family. This has set off a firestorm of reactions from groups that oppose Focus in the Famliy, like the National Organization for Women (don’t you love these names?) who do not approve the message of the ad. Additionally, advocate groups like PETA are up in arms because they have been denied Superbowl air time for their causes.
Honestly, the reason CBS approved this ad are probably related to the economy. IF you’re willing to pay $2.6 Million for an ad in the economy – they’ll take your money.
What is interesting to me about all this are the circumstances of Tim Tebow’s birth. In the ad Tim is expected to tell the story of his mother’s pregnancy. Mrs. Tebow became very ill during a mission to the Philippines and was advised to terminate the pregnancy to save her life. She ignored the doctor, Tim was born and Mrs. Tebow survived.
First, Jewish Law does not share the same views as Christian Law on abortion. In a situation where the mother’s life is in danger, many traditional authorities hold that the mother MUST abort the pregnancy. There is an assumption that fundamentalist Christians and Orthodox Jews agree on abortion. That is just not true.
Second, even those that hold that abortion is immoral and should never be allowed, is this a wholesome message? To ignore a doctor’s strong recommendation? Isn’t reckless? Don’t we look at Scientology with disdain when a life is lost because of their refusal to see a doctor? What if Mrs. Tebow lost her life in the pregnancy and Tim dies before birth?
It seems that advocating for the sanctity of life is a fair cause to support, but advocating in a manner that breeds recklessness… That seems irresponsible.
Related posts:
Quick question – why, precisely, is Tim Tebow a better role model than LeBron James?
Great question.
I have been working on a post that addresses this and other issues.
Check back later for a follow up post.
You had pointed out in the article that in ths economy if a company wants to lay out 2.6 millon for a commercial why not take it, well then how come when CBS was approached by a Gay Matchmakers site that had wanted to advertise during the Super Bowl they were denied. I think it that CBS clearly had thier own political views when making decisions for the Super Bowl.
I also don’t like how politicians, and political groups use sports to get across their message. When OBama was on TV at the Georgetown/Duke bball game on Saturday he didnt mention one aspect of the goverment, politics etc and soley stuck to sports. It is a sporting event which is suppose to fun, enjoyable, exciting keep it to that and if you want to get your political views do it in a magazine, or a news station. Don’t piggyback the Super Bowl because 100 Mil are watching and otherwise the majority of the public doesn’t talk about it.
The reasons they would deny an ad such as Gay Matchmakers is probably because they fear the backlash would be too severe to justify taking the money. Just my thoughts. I believe more Americans are anti-abortion than pro-gay so it was a calculated risk.
You are 100% correct that just because you have a platform (fame / movie star / athlete) it makes you no more qualified to make a political statement. Great point about the President too.
Congrats on Deadspin Shoutout!
thanks!
[...] I thought the Tebow ad was going to “tell his mother’s story”. It did not. [...]
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