Fox Rejects Miller Beer Ads for Super Bowl

[Mister K]

Fox Rejects Miller Beer Ads for Super Bowl

A dispute between the country's two biggest beer brewers has a brand-new battlefield - the Super Bowl. Late last week, with football fans by the millions gearing up for the big game, Fox Broadcasting decided not to put on the air a Miller Brewing Company ad that poked fun at Anheuser-Busch's plans for a new light beer.

A spokesman for Fox refused to comment beyond a statement issued Friday by the network, in which it said that it had "made a decision not to accept specific ads from Miller on Super Bowl Sunday that we consider to portray Anheuser-Busch products, the largest single supporter of the day's programming, in a negative way."

Miller's ad had been scheduled to run during the pregame period, not the Super Bowl itself. Anheuser is the sole beer sponsor of the game.

"We appreciate Miller's desire to advertise with us and would willingly accept other ads for Miller products," Jon Nesvig, president of advertising sales for Fox, said in the statement. He added, "The decision was made to reject these specific ads based on the degree of spending Anheuser-Busch has achieved in support of Fox and the Super Bowl."

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/07/business/media/07mill...

[MaineDem]

1. I'm sure I saw a Miller ad

It said "why is Budweiser introducing a new beer" We don't know either" or something like that.

Did I dream it???

[Zebulon]

4. Re: I'm sure I saw a Miller ad

I saw it too. It ran shortly before the Anheuser-Busch 'rollout' ad.

Maybe they bought ad time on local stations, rather than through the network?

[fortyfeetunder]

20. I saw that ad too in Seattle

Probably local programming.

[fob]

2. What don't those idiots understand about marketing?

If only I could get Miller Beer to mention MY beer company in one of their superbowl ads...


NOTE TO SELF: Start a brewery

May the market teach fox a lesson and have Miller pull ALL their ad dollars from their dumbass stations.

[Supersedeas]

3. and political censorship become commercial censorship--when will real

conservatives wake up to this $hit.

"not to accept specific ads from Miller on Super Bowl Sunday that we consider to portray Anheuser-Busch products, the largest single supporter of the day's programming, in a negative way"

Message: if you are BIG enough, you can SILENCE the competition.

[loudsue]

7. That's what I'm hoping! But Miller won't likely become "activists"

for journalistic purity over this.

It's going to have to go pretty far before the big money machines will turn on the media, and even then, it sure won't be about truth in politics! It will only be as it affects their advertising dollars.

They play on a different playing field than actual "people", who just want to have freedom of the press.

[ihelpu2see]

21. plus didnt Miller give more to Kerry so Fox and Murdoc is

*itch slapping them???

[Dyedinthewoolliberal]

5. The ad that really torqued

me was the one where the Gi's walked through the airport or somewhere and everyone in the commercial was teary eyed and all that stuff. It ended with the words Thank You on the screen.

I must be getting cynical, I see conspiracy to sell *'s war in everything.

Don't get me wrong, I was in the service too and liked being acknowledged by some for giving 4 years to my country.

But * has placed them in harms way needlessly and they are dying for nothing. An ad like that distracts the average viewer from what's really going on...........

[saigon68]

6. SHAMELESS PROPAGANDA

LENI REIFENSTAHL WOULD BE PROUD

It was her work on "Triumph of the Will", a documentary about Adolf Hitler, that would come back to haunt her after the atrocities of WWII. Despite her protests to the contrary, Riefenstahl was considered an intricate part of the Third Reich's propaganda machine.

THE US FLAG RATHER THAN THE SWASTIKA

[TahitiNut]

12. I cringed at the whole militaristic theme throughout the Stupor Bowl.

I tried to imagine how that would've played in my (so-called) mind back during 'Nam ... and I still felt very uncomfortable with the psycho-patriotism. It was VERY Reich-like. Is Nuremberg a suburb of Jacksonville? Treating everyone in the military alike (just because they wear uniform?) is crap. On the other hand, treating them like shit just because the indolent electorate doesn't get off its collective ass and take control of its government is even bigger crap. (I really detest the all-to-often-stated idea that it's the troops' job to say "No.")

[The White Tree]

9. No your point is definately valid

I didn't see the whole commercial your talking about and won't question it's motives but the armed forces are definately being used with dual purpose by the administration - They must fight the war abroad and be used to fight the public relations war at home.

An honorable commander-in-chief would not allow that to happen.

But ours is too weak-kneed to have the conviction to not use our soldiers in this way.

[bunkerbuster1]

16. You're not cynical.

When I was watching this allegedly heartwarming TV spot, I asked my better half, "So, who's doing this spot, Halliburton?"

[against all enemies]

17. Yeah, we can all feel good about supporting our troops as they walk

through the airport, but three GI's died in Iraq on Super Bowl Sunday; while Americans hog down their food and drink their grog.

Some one should admit that all soldiers that go through an airport don't walk. Some are carried in caskets. But we can't admit that. It's all about us feeling good about the war; the truth would only ruin the party.

[alwynsw]

8. If either Miller or Bud were real beers I'd worry.

Until either of them starts producing something besides watered down monkey piss, I'll stick to Bass or Guiness (O.K. stout isn't really beer in most folks eyes, but it beats that sour mule piss U.S. breweries peddle).

end bad faux beer rant

on edit: I'm an alcohol snob, as some of you know. Nothing beats a good single malt IMO, but real beer is dandy with lunch.

[rocktivity]

13. I've always considered light beer to be an abomination

And I remember the teen drunken driving court case that changed the whole culture of beer advertising. I think it's hilarious that the only "real beer" commercials you see now is for the imports. Now they're all one-minute comedy skits because they can't figure out how to be anything else. "Coors Light: The official beer of the NFL"--does that reek of machismo, or what?

I myself drink Coronas when I have the money. Otherwise it's Haffeneffer's Private Stock--the one beer to have when you can't afford to have more than one!


rocknation

[louis-t]

15. Just had my first Haffesefflerbaber.,,whatever

Wheat beer, isn't it? Actually made by Bud I think.

[louis-t]

14. Have to agree with you.

I wouldn't drink a Miller or a Bud for money. Yuck! Miller gives me a headache and tastes bad, and Bud just tastes bad. I grew up watching guys drink pitchers full of the stuff. And not the puny coffee mug sized ones you see today. I mean 64 0z. I would see guys sit down with 2 pitchers and drink them in less than an hour. A gallon of beer! Give me a pint or 2 of Guinness for a whole evening. And I won't spend half of that evening peeing either.

[rocktivity]

10. They just flat out ADMITTED it? That their decision was based on GREED?

"The decision was made to reject these specific ads based on the degree of spending Anheuser-Busch has achieved in support of Fox and the Super Bowl."

That's downright un-Amercian!!! Ever heard of free enterprise and competition, Fox? Especially since the commericial would have been sponoring a show that expresses the ultimate in competition? Run the commericals, let the beers compete, and let the audience vote with their wallets--THAT'S how it's supposed to work in this country!


rocknation

[dansolo]

19. They probably bribed them with the pro-military ad

I wouldn't be suprised if they probably agreed to make a pro-military ad in exchange for blocking their competition from airing any ads.

[trogdor]

11. Seems to me...

...this is the new frontier as far as civil rights is concerned. If you wanted to really screw over minority-owned businesses, all you have to do is deny them advertising space. It's legal, and you can make up just about any bullshit reason you want for the denial.

Last year, they did this to MoveOn and PeTA. This year, Anheuser Busch runs ads that are more propagandistic in nature than the ones CBS rejected last year. They get away with it because they're Anheuser Busch, the single largest sponsor of the Stupid Bowl.

[Plaid Adder]

18. Wow. So they give ALL their sponsors the same protection the GOP gets. n/t

[sellitman]

22. I have boycotted Bud & Coors for years

This just makes me feel even better about mt decision.