networks ban controversial church ad
i may lose some respect from some . . . but a few comments on the below story . . .

- obviously, the "bouncer" motif is a shot at intentional hyperbole, but the commercial itself is really unfair.  i know of no church that's faithful to the Gospel that would turn anyone away from its doors for such a reason.  in my own church, as a matter of fact, a good friend of mine recently "came out" (ie: repenting, asking the church body to forgive him, and asking for help as he struggles).

- i suppose what we're supposed to get from the ad is more of a "we don't even believe that homosexuality is wrong" vibe, thinly veiled as simply having "open doors", when in fact, most everyone's doors are opened.  the notion that evangelicals and other orthodox Christians have an expectation that sinners (of all stripes) repent and turn away from their sin likely offends them.  they really should try a little more transparency instead of relying upon cute quips and ridiculous imagery.

- at the same time, i find it curious that the networks wouldn't allow the ad, citing "controversy".  seems rather laughable and hypocritical of them, considering the tripe that they tend to produce themselves.

- but, the UCC abandoned the Gospel long ago (despite what their official statements say), so this is unsurprising.  a small symptom of a much larger problem.

i shouldn't wait til so late a night to write.  i make myself sound unintelligent and i can't remember half of what i want to say.  anyway, here's the story.

CBS, NBC ban church ad inviting gays
Networks wont run church spot featuring gay couple; say ad runs contrary to company policies.
December 1, 2004: 7:56 PM EST
By Steve Hargreaves, CNN/Money Staff Writer

NEW YORK (CNN/Money) - The CBS and NBC Networks have refused to run an ad by a liberal church promoting the acceptance of people regardless of sexual orientation because the networks believe the ad is advocacy advertising.

The 30-second spot, run by the United Church of Christ, features two muscle-bound bouncers standing outside a church, selecting people who could attend service and those who could not. Among those kept out are two males who appear to be a couple. Written text then appears saying, in part, "Jesus didn't turn people away, neither do we."

"Because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples...and the fact that the executive branch has recently proposed a Constitutional amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast," the church quoted CBS as saying.

A CBS spokesman confirmed that the ad was banned, but would not comment directly about the above statement.

"It was against our policy of accepting advocacy advertising," said the spokesman.

An NBC spokeswoman said the problem with the ad was not its depiction of same sex couples at church, but its implication that other religions are not open to all people.

"It went against our long-standing policy of not accepting ads that deal with issues public controversy," said the NBC spokeswoman.

"It's ironic that after a political season awash in commercials based on fear and deception by both parties seen on all major networks, an ad with a message of welcome and inclusion would be deemed too controversial," said Rev. John Thomas in the statement.

"We find it disturbing that the networks in question seem to have no problem exploiting gay persons through mindless comedies or titillating dramas, but when it comes to a church's loving welcome of committed gay couples, that's where they draw the line."

NBC couldn't comment on the seeming contradiction by the networks who aired a slew of controversial political ads during this past election but now refuse to air the ad from the United Church of Christ.

The commercial can be viewed at www.stillspeaking.com.

The church says the ad has been accepted on a number of other networks, including ABC Family, BET Discovery, Fox, Hallmark, TBS and TNT.

TBS and TNT are owned by Time Warner (Research), which also owns CNN/Money.

CBS is part of Viacom (Research) while NBC belongs to General Electric (Research).

The Cleveland-based United Church of Christ claims 6,000 congregations with 1.3 million members.