The Politics of the Super Bowl

Posted by chelseadavison , Feb, 2010 @ 10:04 am

The Super Bowl seems to be a microcosm where the macrocosm of American culture is clearly represented. National pride, a can-do attitude, testosterone, rock stars, corporations, etc… it’s just all SO American. Therefore the Super Bowl also is a great display of the current politics going on in the United States. Here are a few of the issues addressed in Super Bowl 44.

Pro-life: Anticipation for Tim Tebow’s pro-life ad had caused a lot of controversy leading up to the show, as covered by this Ology article, but the actual campaign seems fairlyharmless. It is however a good indication that pro-life sentiments are still soaring in the country, despite Washington currently leaning more to the left.

Gay rights: An online gay dating site was denied the chance to advertise during the game, as reported by CNN:

“Super Bowl network CBS rejected an ad Friday from ManCrunch.com, a gay dating Web site. ‘After reviewing the ad, which is entirely commercial in nature, our standards and practices department decided not to accept this particular spot,’ said CBS spokeswoman Shannon Jacobs. ‘We are always open to working with a client on alternative submissions.’ ‘It’s straight-up discrimination,’ said Elissa Buchter, spokeswoman for the Toronto-based dating site.”

Was it really about the commercial and its financial appeal or was it about the politics? What do you think?

Gender roles and sexism: The Super Bowl is a pretty masculine event no matter what–big men full of testosterone smashing into each other in the ultimate national competition, not to mention all of the football culture that surrounds the game. However, certain commercials such as the Dodge commercial below, the Dove commercial, and the Flo TV commercial reinforce gender roles and all affirm that men have to battle against controlling girlfriends and wives.

Finally, the fact that the Saints won causes some political conversation because of the automatic association between the team’s victory and the city’s loss during Hurricane Katrina. Suddenly conversations are reemerging about the government’s action (and lack of action) during the crisis and the legacy of New Orleans. Obviously, it’s just a football game but because the Super Bowl is the most watched annual television program, it is a powerful means of addressing the nation and making people think. So, what do you think?

Tags: CNN, commercials, football, Gay Rights, pro-life, sexism, Super Bowl, tim tebow