Barbara France

Managing Editor

bfrance@lassennews.com

Like 111 million other people I tuned in to watch Super Bowl XLV, the Green Bay Packers versus the Pittsburgh Steelers. It was touted as an old-fashioned gridiron game of two teams of old vying for the top price.

I didn’t go to a Super Bowl party or even watch it with family. My husband was at a job networking conference and my daughter was in another room doing homework. I had the game on because there was nothing else on TV to watch. The house was too quiet, and I was hoping to see some very funny or at least memorable commercials. Well, there were some memorable commercials, but not because they were clever or humorous with maybe two exceptions.

Most of the commercials were definitely not for family viewing, and I must admit I was glad I was not at a party and especially not around prepubescent age children. I would have been very embarrassed. I wonder if ever since the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction advertisers decided that it was OK to go racy on commercials since many of the viewers were younger, and the ad spots were only reflecting much of the shows on TV.

Reality TV and many cable TV shows have become edgier, more suggestive and even R-rated movies definitely have swung to the extreme that to an older generation they may be considered X-rated. Does anyone remember when Air Force One received the R-rated designation for violence and language? Compared to a few movies out in the past few years, that movie seems mild. We have desensitized our eyes and become jaded in what we hear. The trend will continue, I’m afraid.

However, the Super Bowl is not a cable TV show that parents can block their children from seeing even if it is seen on a cable channel. It is a national event. It is a worldwide phenomenon that takes place in people’s living rooms, restaurants and bars everywhere. And, advertisers need to be more concerned about what message they is sending to young people and the world besides what product they is trying to sell.

People are talking about how cute the little boy in the Darth Vader costume who thinks he turned on his dad’s car with super powers is. But, I have no idea what car it is? I thought the first-date commercial where the man was only thinking about getting the date in bed was racy, and I have no idea what drink was being sold, same for the commercial that made fun of Eminem. He was in another commercial for a car, which one? My wait for commercial is always the Budweiser feel-good commercial. This year it was plain dumb. And, there is no way the Ozzie/Justin Bieber commercial will ever be as funny as the Ozzie/Donny dream commercial. I remember the commercial this year but not the product, but I do know the Ozzie/Donny was for Diet Pepsi.

Maybe that is the point of Super Bowl commercials — to see how outlandish an advertiser can get before the FCC sanctions it and not if it is selling its product. For some viewers it may work, but I think I will be back to using commercials for a perfect time to get more snacks and talk to my football fanatic friends who stare at the screen and play arm-chair quarterback on every play.

I hope next year it is the Bears in the Super Bowl, but if not, I at least hope my husband is home to watch the Big Game so I can have someone to eat snacks with, snuggle by and agree with me when not so funny commercials air.

In the meantime, I must say that it was fun knowing my Wisconsin family was celebrating Sunday night with cheese curds and Leinenkugels, and my Chico friends had a hometown boy to be proud of.