Menu
Marketing and Sponsorship

Nationwide's Morbid Super Bowl Ad Around Deceased Child Sparks Controversy, Criticism

Nationwide's "Make Safe Happen" Super Bowl ad "provoked such a huge, overwhelmingly negative reaction on Twitter that the company released a statement" late last night, according to Abid Rahman of the HOLLYWOOD REPORTER. The ad, which featured a boy "talking about all the things he'll never get to enjoy because he's dead," quickly "became a trending topic on Twitter and somewhat overshadowed an earlier more well-received" Nationwide ad featuring actors Mindy Kaling and Matt Damon. Nationwide's statement acknowledged that the ad had "started a 'fierce conversation.'" The company said that it "wanted people to talk about the issue rather than sell insurance" (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 2/1). FOXSPORTS.com wrote though the message was "certainly important, the method of delivery ran afoul of many viewers' sensibilities" (FOXSPORTS.com, 2/1). In DC, Marissa Payne wrote under the header, "Congrats To The Nationwide Commercial For Being The Debbie Downer Of The Super Bowl." The ad alluding to a child’s death in a "scary commercial warning parents of the dangers" of household accidents "did not go over well" (WASHINGTONPOST.com, 2/1).

RUINING A GOOD TIME: In Las Vegas, Stephanie Grimes wrote someone at Nationwide "thought it would be a good idea to kill everyone’s good time" with the ad. It "didn’t have the feel of a PSA so much as a straight brand pitch, and was an instant buzzkill during what’s supposed to be a good time" (REVIEWJOURNAL.com, 2/1). YAHOO SPORTS' Jay Busbee wrote Nationwide will "end up being the most talked-about ad but for all the wrong reasons" (SPORTS.YAHOO.com, 2/1). In L.A., Saba Hamedy notes the "morbid commercial sparked social media jokes and general confusion" (L.A. TIMES, 2/2). Messaging expert Frank Luntz said the Nationwide ad is a “good message, but it’s not a good message to send during the Super Bowl when people are in a celebratory mood. You have to understand your audience” (“CBS This Morning,” 2/2). In Chicago, Brandon Wall writes under the header, "Nationwide Insurance's Super Bowl Commercial Was Insanely Grim." Viewers were "caught off guard by an incredibly dark ad" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 2/2). In New Jersey, Virginia Rohan wrote this year's Super Bowl ads were "generally tamer and far less sexist than their predecessors," except for the "shockingly morbid spot from Nationwide" (NORTHJERSEY.com, 2/1). In San Jose, Chuck Barney in a front-page piece wrote Nationwide "laid a blindside hit on us" with the ad. Barney: "Flag them for unsportsmanlike conduct" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 2/2).

SBJ Morning Buzzcast: March 25, 2024

NFL meeting preview; MLB's opening week ad effort and remembering Peter Angelos.

Big Get Jay Wright, March Madness is upon us and ESPN locks up CFP

On this week’s pod, our Big Get is CBS Sports college basketball analyst Jay Wright. The NCAA Championship-winning coach shares his insight with SBJ’s Austin Karp on key hoops issues and why being well dressed is an important part of his success. Also on the show, Poynter Institute senior writer Tom Jones shares who he has up and who is down in sports media. Later, SBJ’s Ben Portnoy talks the latest on ESPN’s CFP extension and who CBS, TNT Sports and ESPN need to make deep runs in the men’s and women's NCAA basketball tournaments.

SBJ I Factor: Nana-Yaw Asamoah

SBJ I Factor features an interview with AMB Sports and Entertainment Chief Commercial Office Nana-Yaw Asamoah. Asamoah, who moved over to AMBSE last year after 14 years at the NFL, talks with SBJ’s Ben Fischer about how his role model parents and older sisters pushed him to shrive, how the power of lifelong learning fuels successful people, and why AMBSE was an opportunity he could not pass up. Asamoah is 2021 SBJ Forty Under 40 honoree. SBJ I Factor is a monthly podcast offering interviews with sports executives who have been recipients of one of the magazine’s awards.

Shareable URL copied to clipboard!

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2015/02/02/Marketing-and-Sponsorship/Nationwide-Ad.aspx

Sorry, something went wrong with the copy but here is the link for you.

https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Daily/Issues/2015/02/02/Marketing-and-Sponsorship/Nationwide-Ad.aspx

CLOSE