The Super Bowl Gets Political

The Super Bowl is the most-watched TV event of the year.

Super Bowl LI proved to be one of the most epic sports events of all time. The New England Patriots managed to come back from a 28-3 deficit against the Atlanta Falcons in the second half, breaking a wide range of records with a remarkable performance. Unfortunately, several companies decided to shift the focus away from the football game in their advertisements towards their own shameless political agendas.

Outrage ensued online after Airbnb, “It’s a 10” hair products, Audi, and 84 Lumber chose to divide the American viewership by promoting leftist propaganda in their ads. They decided that the new Trump presidency justified a complete violation of our previously held standards for funny, lighthearted, entertaining super bowl commercials.

Lady Gaga, surprisingly, did not use her half time performance as an opportunity to create further division, and stuck purely to entertainment, shying away from polarizing political undertones. Regardless of the quality of the performance, Lady Gaga admirably reversed the trend set last year by Beyoncé’s controversial tribute to the Black Panthers — a  violent black nationalist organization. She honorably agreed to put up with the vile condemnation from the far left by simply choosing to not alienate half the country with an unnecessary political jab. Lady Gaga’s performance stands out in stark contrast to the approach taken by many of the advertisers in the commercial spotlight.

Perhaps the most egregious ad was Audi’s ad called “Daughter,” which depicted a young girl’s go-kart race narrated by the thoughts of her father. As the girl races down the track, he asks with an ominous tone, “What do I tell my daughter? Do I tell her that her grandpa is worth more than her grandma? Do I tell her that her dad is worth more than her mom?” Audi chose to perpetuate the “gender pay gap” myth that no credible economist takes seriously. When one compares national income averages, men do make more than women, but this does not factor in anything about difference in life choices, the effect of parenting, or any of the important factors that contribute to this gap; the “78 cents” myth does not tell the full story. Audi did more than just force a given political opinion down the throats of viewers — they presented a tired political talking point based entirely in misinformation, deliberately to mislead and push this victim mentality. The father then laments that “She will automatically be valued as less than every man she ever meets,” supposedly despite any of her best efforts. Audi produced nothing more than a regurgitation of a theory that has no legitimate basis in reality.

More subtle with their political undertones were Airbnb, “It’s a 10,” and 84 Lumber. Airbnb’s ad entitled “We Accept” praised diversity and inclusiveness, supposedly in response to Trump’s immigration ban. “It’s a 10” tried to strike a more humorous tone, claiming that “we’re in for at least four years of awful hair.” It is unclear why these companies would feel inclined to alienate half of their potential customers, but their political motives certainly did not go unnoticed.

In fact, 84 Lumber made such a controversial ad that the initial version was rejected by Fox and the NFL. The original version portrayed the immigration story of a mother and daughter from Mexico to the U.S. — only to be stopped in their tracks by an extensive wall along the border. As the two hold each other in tears, they find a majestic gate in the wall that they can freely pass through. 84 Lumber was forced to remove the part about the border wall due to its blatant political nature, but advised viewers to go online to watch the unedited version. A company that sells building materials somehow saw it fit to make an ad that glorifies open borders and directly attacks one of President Trump’s plans for immigration reform.

The night of Super Bowl LI was not entirely overshadowed by these biased marketing tactics, but the left has proved once again that there are no limits. People began equating the Patriots to Donald Trump simply because many of the players declined to answer any questions about politics. Twitter erupted after the Patriots’ comeback, lamenting the fact “white people” are happy. A large subset of leftists want politics to consume every aspect of peoples’ lives, and is willing to exploit any scenario to promote their agenda. A night designed for entertainment can easily depreciate into a frenzy of political propaganda, and the left’s character is becoming more and more transparent.