The GM of the NBC affiliate in Chattanooga, Tenn., owned by Sarkes Tarzian Inc. says it decided to not accept ads 'for gay marriage' or 'against gay marriage'," after the Freedom To Marry group attempted to buy time for a 30-second spot.
DMA 88 (CHATTANOOGA, TN)
WRCB Won’t Run Ad Pormoting Gay Marriage
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — A Chattanooga television station won’t run an advertisement in support of gay marriage.
The ad features Jesse Ehrenfeld, a Nashville doctor and Navy reservist who recently returned from Afghanistan. In the ad, Ehrenfeld says, “I was able to stand up and put my life on the line for the freedoms that we all enjoy, and yet I don’t have the freedom to marry my partner Judd.”
Tennessee is one of four states whose ban on same-sex marriage is currently before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Marc Solomon is the national campaign director at Freedom to Marry, which produced the 30-second advertisement. He said Tuesday that WRCB-TV declined the ad as too controversial. Solomon said other television stations in Chattanooga, Nashville and Memphis are running it.
The WRCB-TV president and general manager Tom Tolar said in an email that the station reviews all commercials before airing them.
“In this case, we decided to not accept ads ‘for gay marriage’ or ‘against gay marriage’,” he wrote.
BRAND CONNECTIONS
In an interview, Ehrenfeld said he has mostly received positive feedback from people who have seen the ad. He said he has gotten a couple of online comments from people suggesting he just move to another state, but he said Tennessee is home now.
Ehrenfeld said he hopes his story as a gay man who also is a conservative Republican living in Tennessee causes people in the state to “pause and reflect and have a conversation.”
Comments (12)
Mark Gregory says:
June 3, 2015 at 8:54 am
He wants people who live in Tennessee to ‘pause and reflect…’ . It’s Tennessee! They don’t want a conversation! That would mean they would have to listen to reasonable people give opinions that differ from their own! What was the comment Ehrenfeld got … “just move to another state?” Now, that’s Tennessee.
Shenee Howard says:
June 3, 2015 at 9:22 am
Unfortunately I know other states just like that. Missouri comes to mind. Sad, considering it is 2015.
yin yu says:
June 3, 2015 at 10:15 am
Did the doctor ever have an anatomy class? DNA deniers can call same sex unions what they want but the laws of nature and science don’t call it marriage.
Gene Johnson says:
June 3, 2015 at 10:53 am
Marriage has nothing to do with nature and science, it is a legal (or religious) construct created by human beings. Should I note highly fallible human beings?
yin yu says:
June 3, 2015 at 8:00 pm
Then let’s pass a law that will outlaw gravity. If you want to look at it from a public policy point, why should taxpayers subsidize a union that can never create baby taxpayers. it is suicidal public policy. Biology not bigotry.
Trudy Handel says:
June 4, 2015 at 7:31 am
Excellent. So I assume you’ll be first in line to support banning marriage by those who are sterile, too old to conceive, etc?
Michelle Underwood says:
June 3, 2015 at 10:25 am
Good for Tom Tolar. Finally someone with a backbone that wont fold to the Gaystapo.
Jeff Groves says:
June 3, 2015 at 10:41 am
SECONDED! God Bless Tom Tolar, and the Governor of Indiana, which is why I’ll be spending my vacation next month.
Gene Johnson says:
June 3, 2015 at 10:58 am
Not seconded. If he had a backbone he would run ads that he thinks are controversial, or could stir controversy in a community that may not be as receptive to gay marriage as others. And as for the reference to “Gaystapo,” it is not advocates of gay marriage who are trying to prevent others from enjoying the benefits of a legally recognized civil status (i.e., marriage), or impose their will on others. Rather, it is folks who oppose gay marriage who want to deny a civil legal right and impose their own views on others. (Note, I am not talking about forcing any religious official such as a priest, minister, rabbi, etc. from having to perform a marriage ceremony if it is contrary to their religious views.)
Michelle Underwood says:
June 3, 2015 at 11:33 am
But that’s the next step James V. Look at the businesses in blue states fined out of business for not toeing the anything goes liberal line.
Jill Hatzioannou says:
June 3, 2015 at 4:27 pm
“Fined out of business” sounds like a bit of hyperbole. Can you provide some examples of this?
Jeff Groves says:
June 3, 2015 at 4:48 pm
“I am not talking about forcing any religious official
from performing a marriage ceremony if it is contrary to their religious views”. I’m against ANYONE being forced to perform a business from doing something that violates the proprietor’s religious beliefs. This is why I stand behind Indiana’s Governor Mike Pence, as he’s taking a stand for those who do not want to do business with someone because doing that business would violate their religious beliefs (In this case doing business concerning same-sex marriages). Surpreme Court ruling or not, this issue is poised to TEAR THIS COUNTRY APART. Heaven help us when this happens.