I know that is a shocking title to see on the blog of someone who does marketing and advertising for a living and I also know that many people who follow my ramblings on a consistent basis will read the above title and think, "Well, duh. That goes without saying." It also goes without saying that I am not now, nor have I ever been, a fan of sporting events. I do keep up with the scores to see how certain teams are faring, like the Redskins or the Bills, and I was really impressed with the way Kansas City came up quickly from behind to win the other day after 50 years. I was at a restaurant and San Francisco was ahead by quite a margin and, less than an hour later, bang! Kansas City won. I had spent most of the day outside hiking and enjoying the spring-like weather rather than watching the game.
Anyway, aside from all of that, I do not pay much attention to sports at all. I decided I better say this before I proceed further, because I am about to slam what is arguably one of the most-watched sports events of the year, Super Bowl. Now that Super Bowl LIV has gone down in the history books, I believe I can get away with declaring that watching events like that can be hazardous to a person's health.
I always find it amusing that we condemn the Romans for building giant coliseums for their enjoyment as political and religious dissidents were thrown to the lions or forced to participate in gladiatorial combat until one of the participants was killed. Yet, in America, we build giant stadiums for much the same purpose today. And they are being built larger and better than anything Rome ever imagined. I guess we are not as enlightened as we once thought we had become.
Everyone knows the scene. Big, heavy guys chasing each other with a small oval-shaped piece of pigskin while 100 million people sit at home or in some bar watching the action with bags of chips, buckets of salsa and assorted other types of dips and a good supply of soda and beer on hand. The action goes on as the nation, hoping one of the two teams they might not even support, beats the other in an attempt to be labeled "America's Team", sits and watches.
Every February, it is the same thing. Super Bowl attracts approximately 100 million viewers across the nation, which is approximately one third of the entire population, and the companies who advertise during the game pay an estimated $5.2 million for half a minute of advertising to reach the largest audience possible, which this year included presidential hopefuls and a man thanking his vet for taking care of his dog.
Every year, those who choose to watch Super Bowl sit through commercial after commercial promoting shoes to make you a better athlete. Or phones to make your life easier, faster, better. And, also, commercials to make your fast food faster, delivered right to your front door without having to leave the house, and your beer smoother. We are also apt to see commercials promoting soft drinks that will bring our friends closer and promote peace on Earth by printing labels in any number of foreign languages or even personalized with your best friend's name. There are also the commercials for better and faster cars that are perfectly engineered for a mid-life crisis.
One thing you will never see while watching Super Bowl are commercials promoting better health or a healthier lifestyle. You will also not see commercials promoting the great outdoors, protecting wildlife, saving the environment for the next generation, spending more time with your family not tied down to the electronic cocoon we have created, or a host of other important issues. All the commercials seem geared for the Half-Time show, which becomes more racy, suggestive and sexual every year. From skimpy outfits, to torn clothes to kisses people will talk about until next year's Super Bowl.
The reason advertisements do not promote better health, healthy lifestyles or the great outdoors is because of a lack of money or motive.
If you buy more shoes, someone somewhere makes more money. When you buy beer, soft drinks, hamburgers or sports cars based on advertising, a company somewhere makes more money. I am not downplaying the role advertising plays in our society, because I make my livelihood off advertising goods and services to the general public so someone somewhere can make money, including myself.
There are no advertisers willing to pay $5 million to run advertising preventing the flu, curing cancer, preventing the spread of HIV or AIDS, promoting awareness of teen pregnancy, bringing awareness of diabetes, bringing awareness of homelessness in America, or even cutting down on the rate of teen smoking and vaping, although they would reach the most people during Super Bowl than during a regular spot commercial during Prime Time.
Health care providers will not spend the amount of money required to advertise health issues. Health care people do not make money unless you are sick and they are not going to spend Super Bowl rate money to help make you healthy or improve your diet and help you lose weight.
Health promotion, then, is left in the hands of the public health system, which has no inclination to advertise during Super Bowl. There is no doubt that advertising is effective during Super Bowl time slot, but that advertising belongs to the realm of the extremely wealthy.
Therefore, the products and services advertised during Super Bowl generally promote poor health, poor practices and unhealthy lifestyles.
Everyone should avoid heavy drinking and heavy food consumption during the game, anyway. After all, Monday is a work day, and the idea of making yourself sick just because you want to enjoy a sporting event on television is ridiculous anyway.
Parties are generally an outcome of the televised advertisements, because they promote a party attitude and lifestyle and promote a variety of ways to "Have a good time."
Until health care starts advertising, there will continue to be promotional advertisements for poor health and unhealthy lifestyles. Not that I am putting any of that down, because I love soda, chips, salsa, dip, desserts and all of that stuff.
Having a few friends over for a potluck dinner, or gathering at a church building or community center to eat snacks during the game or to play a few games before or even afterwards are a few ways to promote cleaner living in safe and healthy environments.
Commercials should always be watched with care. Not that I do not enjoy Geico commercials, which are cleverly written, but, as a professional, I also recognize the powerful influence a commercial can have on our society.
If your child is in the hospital suffering with cancer, or complications from measles or mumps that could have been prevented, or even with the dreaded virus from China, or someone you know is dying of AIDS, or your spouse is in coronary care due to a lifetime of smoking, or your teenager is suffering a brain injury from vaping or some sports-related injury, it really does not matter what kind of running shoes you are wearing, what type of car you drive, or what type of soft drink you prefer, or what the newest microbrewery is releasing next. What matters at that point is how healthy living and better choices could have made a difference.
Maybe the price of advertising should come down a little, so smaller companies and health care officials can advertise. Maybe the mom and pop businesses could stay around a little longer if they could compete for advertising against Amazon, Wal-Mart, Target and a hundred other companies that can afford to pay the price for Super Bowl advertising. Or, maybe, like I have mentioned before, I just have a shallow gene pool.
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