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CBS-TV Says It Will Air Tebow Ad on Super Bowl Sunday... Why Not Have a Faith-Informed Discussion About It?

February 7, 2010
Message from Reverend Dr. Carlton W. Veazey, President and CEO, Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice

CBS will not drop the Super Bowl commercial from the right-wing political organization Focus on the Family.
 
But we have choices - change the channel, get a snack when the ad airs, watch it without comment, or - my choice - use this opportunity to discuss the issues it raises.  
 
We are strong supporters of open and honest discussion and full information. People can and do understand what we mean by the morality of "choice" when there is thoughtful consideration of all the issues involved in moral decision-making.
 
So pass the chips and let's begin. 
 
Background: Focus on the Family has purchased time for a 30-second ad on the February 7 airing of the Super Bowl on CBS. We understand that the ad will feature University of Florida quarterback Tim Tebow and his mother, Pam, sharing their emotional story about a very difficult medical decision made by Pam Tebow to carry her pregnancy to term against medical advice.

What's wrong with this ad?
This ad presents one woman's experience. Pam Tebow chose to continue her pregnancy against medical advice and, thankfully, gave birth to a healthy child. But that is not always the case and even the suggestion that a woman should ignore medical advice is irresponsible, harmful and dangerous.

Women face difficult moral choices every day. This ad fails to present all of them - to continue a pregnancy, to terminate a pregnancy, and to make an adoption plan - and in that way distorts the very real complexities of women's lives. 

What does it have to do with religion?
The ad was developed and paid for by Focus on the Family, which brands itself as a Christian organization. In fact, it is a political organization that advocates for and against specific issues, according to its understanding of Scripture. It advocates for outlawing abortion, except in rare cases when the woman's life is severely at risk.
 
As RCRC supporters, we know that denominations and people of faith have diverse views about abortion but that most teach that abortion is a moral decision for a woman to make. We are not pro-abortion -- we are pro-choice because we trust women to make moral decisions about bearing a child.

It would be better for women if this ad demonstrated the reality -- that women make choices about pregnancy every day. Many of us and our families will see this ad. Let's deal with it openly. 

Reverend Veazey's Statement Urging CBS to Drop the Ad

January 26, 2010

As people of faith, we have a sacred responsibility to protect women's health, lives and dignity. That is why I am urging you to contact CBS now and tell them not to air a religiously-focused ad that celebrates a woman who ignored medical advice to have an abortion. The fact that the ad will air on Super Bowl Sunday and that the child she delivered is a football star makes it all the more insidious. Super Bowl viewers – last year, more than 97.5 million people watched the game – will be told that it is noble for a woman to sacrifice her health and life, in this case for the game of football.

It is critical that you contact CBS NOW! CBS is getting a lot of pressure over this ad – but they have not heard from people of faith who object to this ad and object to the equation of being Christian and being anti-abortion. They need to hear from RCRC supporters!

The ad – developed and paid for by the anti-equality, anti-choice conservative Christian organization Focus on the Family  – will feature Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Tim Tebow and his mother, Pam. Pam became sick during a mission trip to the Philippines in 1987 and ignored a recommendation by doctors to have an abortion. It is a blessing that Tim’s birth was healthy, but it is irresponsible to encourage other women to take such a risk, and it is offensive to use the Super Bowl to suggest that such a risk is justified by the birth of an athlete.

What’s equally offensive is that the ad is a slap in the face to religious pluralism. CBS is accepting this Focus on the Family “religious” ad, but it rejected ads by the United Church of Christ, an RCRC member organization, a few years ago. CBS said the UCC ads were “too controversial.”

We can’t be silent in the face of hypocrisy and intolerance! Please add your voice to the national outcry against CBS’s airing of this immoral, dangerous message. Contact CBS at this email address: audsvcs@cbs.com or send a email through our Action Alert system

This is a suggested email - but please feel free to use your own words.

It is an irresponsible use of the airwaves and an abdication of public trust to distort the medical and moral aspects of reproductive decision-making. By celebrating a woman who ignored medical advice to have an abortion, it suggests that to endanger a woman’s life is noble.

Last year, NBC also made the prudent decision to not air anti-choice messages during the Super Bowl. I encourage CBS to respect the interests of all its viewers and to reject the Focus on the Family ad.

It is appalling to encourage women to sacrifice their health and lives for any reason. Please do not air this harmful, inappropriate and offensive ad.