×
You will be redirected back to your article in seconds

Bloomberg Super Bowl Commercial to Focus on Gun Violence

Mike Bloomberg may be vying with President Donald Trump for attention in Sunday’s Super Bowl, but he won’t be mentioning the current occupant of the White House in the minute-long commercial he plans to run in the big event.

Bloomberg, who is making a national appeal for the Democratic nomination for the 2020 presidential race, unveiled a 60-second Super Bowl ad Thursday that is slated to appear just after Pepsi’s halftime show, suggesting the message could run just before Fox’s broadcast of Super Bowl LIV moves into the third quarter. The spot will focus on the dangers of gun violence, and how Bloomberg expects to make the issue a major one in his campaign.

“When I heard Mike was stepping into the ring, I thought, ‘Now we have a dog in this fight,'” says gun violence advocate Calandrian Simpson-Kemp, a mother who lost her son to gun violence during the ad.

““I chose to devote the entire sixty-second ad to gun safety because it matters to communities across the country and it will be a top priority for me as president,” Bloomberg said in a statement. “Calandrian’s story is a powerful reminder of the urgency of this issue and the failure of Washington to address it. People will be rooting for different teams in the Super Bowl, but virtually all Americans — including people in both parties and a majority of gun owners — support universal background checks and other common sense gun laws.”

President Trump’s campaign is also expected to run a 60-second ad during the game. Advertisers have expressed concern that the political commercials could detract from the mood of the game – and play a role in diminishing the effectiveness of their sundry pitches. Fox is running promos for its own programming around the Bloomberg and Trump ads, according to a person familiar with the matter, in a bid to create a content buffer between the campaign commercials and the usual coterie of ads for beer, soda and snacks.

More TV

  • Gene Reynolds Dead

    Gene Reynolds, Co-Creator of 'MASH,' Dies at 96

    Six-time Emmy winner Gene Reynolds, known for his writing, directing and producing for the lauded socially conscious 1970s TV shows “MASH” and “Lou Grant,” died Monday in Burbank, Calif. He was 96. Starting in 1993, Reynolds served four years as president of the Directors Guild of America, which confirmed his death. Asked to produce a [...]

  • CBS

    CBS Orders Comedy Pilots From 'Spider-Man: Homecoming' Writers, 'Will & Grace' Creators

    CBS has picked up three more multi-camera pilots and one single-camera comedy pilot for the 2020-2021 season. The first hails from writers and executive producers Max Mutchnick and David Kohan, the co-creators of “Will & Grace.” Their CBS pilot is titled “Please Hold for Frankie Wolfe.” Wolfe is described as an unfiltered, irreverent, powerful businesswoman [...]

  • Danielle Deadwyler

    TV News Roundup: Danielle Deadwyler Joins HBO Max's 'Station Eleven' Adaptation

    In today’s TV news roundup, Danielle Deadwyler joined the cast of HBO Max’s “Station Eleven” adaptation and Netflix unveiled a teaser for “Altered Carbon” Season 2. CASTING Danielle Deadwyler has joined the cast of the HBO Max adaptation of “Station Eleven” in a recurring role, Variety has learned exclusively. She will play Miranda Carroll, the author [...]

  • Jameela Jamil attends the NBC and

    Jameela Jamil Tapped to MC, Judge Voguing Competition Series at HBO Max

    HBO Max has announced that actress Jameela Jamil will serve as MC and judge on “Legendary,” the streaming service’s upcoming unscripted competition series. “Legendary” turns modern day ball culture into a competition, featuring divas battling on teams called “Houses” in challenges involving fashion, dance and voguing. Each house is comprised of five performers and a [...]

  • Stephen Falk

    WeWork TV Series Enlists 'You're the Worst' Creator Stephen Falk as Showrunner

    Stephen Falk has signed on as creator and showrunner of the planned limited series about the rise and fall of WeWork. The series was originally announced in December, with “Succession” star Nicholas Braun attached to play WeWork co-founder Adam Neumann. No network or streaming service is currently attached to the project, which hails from Chernin [...]

  • Tom Hiddleston

    Tom Hiddleston to Lead Netflix Political Thriller 'White Stork'

    “Thor” star Tom Hiddleston is set to front a 10-part political thriller for Netflix, Variety has confirmed. Produced by “Sex Education” firm Eleven, “White Stork” will find Hiddleston, whose most recent credits have largely related to the Marvel universe, playing politician James Cooper, whose parliamentary ambitions and personal life are thwarted when he is the subject [...]

More From Our Brands

Access exclusive content