The above ad for Daniel Defense won’t be airing during the Super Bowl. It was created by, and based on, Daniel Defense’s Director of Marketing Jordan Hunter, a former United States Marine. The advertiser claims they were rejected for their pro-gun message. The NFL claims that they were rejected due to strict guidelines. The dispute has been in the news this month, and was resolved yesterday, with the final decision being that the ad will not air.
The guidelines for advertising during NFL events explicitly prohibit ads for firearms or stores that exclusively sell firearms. Daniel Defense is a firearms manufacturing and sales company. They claim they should be allowed to run the ad based on the exception provided in the guidelines, which allows advertising from stores that sell guns if they also sell other items. For example, Walmart sells guns and ammo, but that is obviously a small percent of what Walmart offers. So their ads are permissible under the rules. Daniel Defense is claiming they are covered under the same exception since they also sell “outdoor gear and supplies”.
This might sound like a simple dispute about guidelines, until you recall that gun control ads have aired during the Super Bowl in recent years. So is the mechanics, or the message?
With the ever-increasing onslaught of political correctness permeating the NFL, it’s not hard to guess. To put it another way, can you imagine an ad that was not selling firearms but explicitly opposed gun control being aired this year? How long until groups that merely support the second amendment aren’t allowed at all, regardless of the message or product they’re pitching?
The only thing left to say is a simple reminder, to both the NFL and the Obama administration: Cold. Dead. Hands.
(h/t IJReview.com)