Video: The first ultra-scary Tebow ad for Focus on the Family
posted at 3:24 pm on February 7, 2010 by Ed Morrissey
Steven Ertelt at LifeNews got an advance look at the Focus on the Family ad for this evening’s Super Bowl [see update below -- for the pre-game], featuring Pam Tebow and her son Tim. The ad, which created a firestorm of controversy, shockingly depicts a mother proud of her son, who “almost didn’t make it into this world,” and even more horrifyingly notes that “I love him.” Next thing you know, Super Bowl ads will talk about apple pie, hot dogs, and the American flag. It’s a slippery slope, I tell you:
Besides calling her Heisman Trophy winning son a “miracle baby,” the ad never discusses explicitly the heartbreaking choice offered to Pam Tebow during her pregnancy. For that, the ad refers viewers back to Focus on the Family. Just remember that this was the commercial that infuriated feminists when you’re watching the GoDaddy commercials and skimpily-dressed women selling beer. Be sure to check LifeNews for the transcript.
Update: This is one of two commercials — the other one will run during the game, and that will be the more “controversial” spot. This is the pre-game ad, which is running now.
Blowback
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Eh. I don’t want to watch it before the SuperBowl. I always skip all those sneak peaks, better to just be surprised when the moment comes.
El_Terrible on February 7, 2010 at 3:26 PM
There will be riots in the streets after that commercial airs, I’m sure. Oh, the horror…
Slublog on February 7, 2010 at 3:26 PM
God help us…..
Rightwingguy on February 7, 2010 at 3:27 PM
Hah. Libs have egg all over their face.
andy85719 on February 7, 2010 at 3:27 PM
That’s it? That’s what has caused a controversy? It doesn’t make any reference to the pro-life movement or opposition to abortion.
She calls him a miracle baby, say she loves him, and there’s one part of one line that says “Celebrate Life”.
amerpundit on February 7, 2010 at 3:27 PM
OMG!!! That is one scary commercial. No wonder people are having seizures over it.
Oy vey. It’s an absolutely adorable commercial. Period.
mjk on February 7, 2010 at 3:28 PM
I am shocked, SHOCKED I tell you!
GinaE on February 7, 2010 at 3:28 PM
Someone call Janet Napolatano stat!!!
SouthernGent on February 7, 2010 at 3:28 PM
Obama would have told Michelle to abort the baby and throw it into a closet full of clothes. Michelle Obama doesn’t talk about how much she loves her girls, but how they used to be FATTIES and needed to go on a BIG FAT DIET.
andy85719 on February 7, 2010 at 3:28 PM
What a great commercial. For the few unaware of the controversy, they’ll be surprised when Tebow comes in at the end. Simple and beautifully done. The background music is an interesting choice, but a good one. After viewing the ad, this only makes the outraged look like fools.
conservative pilgrim on February 7, 2010 at 3:29 PM
M
kwbrownie2003 on February 7, 2010 at 3:30 PM
Do not celebrate family or life! Evil!
daesleeper on February 7, 2010 at 3:30 PM
These people are obviously terrorists.
tetriskid on February 7, 2010 at 3:31 PM
Maybe if we all pray to Mother Earth we can overcome this horror, this tragedy of an add.
kwbrownie2003 on February 7, 2010 at 3:32 PM
Did anyone really think the NFL would let it be truly controversial ? Just more fear tactics from the left.
Sorry But I would be happy if they left the Go Daddy commercials out of the NFL show but hey it is their business.
CWforFreedom on February 7, 2010 at 3:32 PM
(picture lefties running through streets, arms flailing away in the air, hair being pulled from skulls, screeching, the gnashing of teeth, eyes red with anger)
AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!
Seven Percent Solution on February 7, 2010 at 3:32 PM
Definitely an embarrassing moment for the pro-choice crowd. The ad is touching.
txag92 on February 7, 2010 at 3:32 PM
The Republicans in Congress were told about this commercial and did nothing about it.
LibTired on February 7, 2010 at 3:32 PM
When you’ve gone all in with the Party of Death, I can see why this would freakin’ petrify you. Tools.
ya2daup on February 7, 2010 at 3:34 PM
I blame Bush…
Seven Percent Solution on February 7, 2010 at 3:35 PM
I sure hope America’s youth is not exposed to this sort of extreme, indoctrinating propaganda. I hope Congress forms some committees in order to keep garbage like this off the air.
Metro on February 7, 2010 at 3:35 PM
Perhaps Eric Holder could investigate the Tebow’s for hate speech.
fenian5 on February 7, 2010 at 3:35 PM
Again, cheers to Tebow and mom…nice ad. It’s just “Focus on the Family” is a vile, unhinged organization. Too bad they’re the one’s fronting this.
JetBoy on February 7, 2010 at 3:35 PM
Next thing you know, average American citizens will start organizing and protesting out of control government spending.
rbj on February 7, 2010 at 3:36 PM
Yeah, their whole pro-family and pro-values thing disgusts me, too.
amerpundit on February 7, 2010 at 3:37 PM
Very nicely done. A good mom who loves and is proud of her son.
God Bless Pam and Tim Tebow.
OmahaConservative on February 7, 2010 at 3:37 PM
The least controversial ad I’ve ever seen.
nickj116 on February 7, 2010 at 3:37 PM
But if you play it backwards at half speed it says “don’t get an abortion, don’t get an abortion”!
The poor left… they sure have been maybe a laughingstock lately.
behiker on February 7, 2010 at 3:38 PM
wow, the libs went nuclear—-over that.
Psyche!
ted c on February 7, 2010 at 3:38 PM
That’s it! Now I’ve got to call my mom and tell her how much I love her…….again! Damn you Focus on the Family! Have you no moral principals?
Rovin on February 7, 2010 at 3:39 PM
Fox’s Megyn Kelly sure nailed Gloria Allred on this one! Gloria’s ‘legal’ objections were shot to pieces, and Megyn rightly characterized Allred’s involvement as nothing more than a publicity.
What a joke! Let’s see NOW and Allred and the slobbering Lefties dig their way out of the massive hole they dug for themselves.
KendraWilder on February 7, 2010 at 3:39 PM
THAT is what they are all up in arms about?
That ad is a Mom who loves her son. A son that is a very good role model unlike Plaxico Burress, Ray Lewis, Gilbert Arenas, etc, etc. etc.
gophergirl on February 7, 2010 at 3:39 PM
Wow. That’s a million times milder than I’d anticipated. It’s very sweet and funny, far from the evil, rights-choking spot we were all led to believe would be aired. I can’t believe anyone will be offended by this. I guess I think it’s so low-key that I can’t really imagine anyone will be that swayed by it, either, but who knows? If this doesn’t go down as the classiest of all Super Bowl commercials this year, I’ll be shocked.
WesternActor on February 7, 2010 at 3:39 PM
Definitely, a Captain Renault moment.
Jeff2161 on February 7, 2010 at 3:39 PM
Aside from the obvious, the good news here is that thousands will go to the Focus on the Family website to read the full story…Beautifully done! FanTAStic!
LEBA on February 7, 2010 at 3:40 PM
NOW needs new batteries in their devices.
Jeff2161 on February 7, 2010 at 3:40 PM
I was expecting Pam Tebow to be breathing fire.
Mark1971 on February 7, 2010 at 3:40 PM
I an only use one word to describe this ad – sweet!!
And we all know how liberals hate anything that’s sweet!
One ad down….one to go!!
IrishGirl17 on February 7, 2010 at 3:40 PM
Imagine if you will…. A mother loves her son… It’s the Twilight Zone.
Jeff2161 on February 7, 2010 at 3:41 PM
Sticking political ads into the Super Bowl is a terrible idea.
Doesn’t matter what the politics are.
Next time around, global warming people will get an ad, Obama will get an ad, etc. It’s just a terrible idea.
Moesart on February 7, 2010 at 3:42 PM
I demand that Gloria Allred and every other pro-death activist that spewes their $.02, on TT & mom, in the media go back on the air tomorrow and talk about the ad, now that they’ve seen it.
Me? I’ll break out some popcorn and enjoy myself.
AH_C on February 7, 2010 at 3:43 PM
Good one! But you’re dating yourself. I bet half the kids in here didn’t “get it”. I cant even remember was that the White Album or Sgt. Peppers?
Rovin on February 7, 2010 at 3:43 PM
Abort him now!!!!
Denverslim on February 7, 2010 at 3:44 PM
Nothing stops that now. The federal government has an ad promoting the Census. There’s an Obama interview on CBS coming right before the Super Bowl. He’s getting his time to push his political agenda, courtesy of CBS.
amerpundit on February 7, 2010 at 3:44 PM
He shoots!
He scores!
gophergirl on February 7, 2010 at 3:44 PM
Yeah… the answer is always less free speech.
tetriskid on February 7, 2010 at 3:45 PM
I wonder if the feminazis are capable of shame. If so, this should send them into hiding. I won’t hold my breath.
AubieJon on February 7, 2010 at 3:45 PM
Shocking. CBS will definitely be hearing from me. This goes against all my public school indoctrination.
darwin on February 7, 2010 at 3:50 PM
Revolver actually.
Jeff2161 on February 7, 2010 at 3:51 PM
A hearty LOL…
Jeff2161 on February 7, 2010 at 3:51 PM
What a sweet, beautiful ad! Hope their other ad is just as touching.
GrannySunni on February 7, 2010 at 3:52 PM
Meh. I’ve got no problem with it.
crr6 on February 7, 2010 at 3:53 PM
A higher proportion of minority women have abortions than do white women. So showing a white woman who chose not to have an abortion is obviously a deeply racist condemnation of minority women who choose abortion.
eeyore on February 7, 2010 at 3:53 PM
Gloria Steinem, you have been PWNED.
fossten on February 7, 2010 at 3:54 PM
Good Lord! I’ve never seen so much “hate” since…since…well since the tea-parties. And we all know how “chuck-full-o-hate” them tea-parties were. HA! HA! HA!
Libs are pathetic!
RMR on February 7, 2010 at 3:54 PM
THAT WAS OUTRAGEOUS!
I AM APPALLED!!
Now I know why the left was so apoplectic about it.
Good thing these kinds of horrors aren’t on the tube everyday. It would be the end of civilization as know it. Literally…
/
*sigh*
katy on February 7, 2010 at 3:54 PM
OMG, that’s disgusting. The humanity!
disa on February 7, 2010 at 3:55 PM
Is Tebow a “corpse-man”?
Nethicus on February 7, 2010 at 3:55 PM
I wouldn’t have even known this was a pro-life ad if I hadn’t heard about all the controversy. Outraged lefties and feminists (one in the same I guess) are probably so mad because they are jealous of a wonderful child/parent relationship.
AusTex girl on February 7, 2010 at 3:55 PM
Palin likes the ad.
How do you like it now?
darwin on February 7, 2010 at 3:55 PM
It’s really quite genius how they did this…
If NOW and the media hadn’t made such a stink about it, one would never have known the story behind it and the link to abortion.
HA HA HA!!!
katy on February 7, 2010 at 3:57 PM
danger will robinson
cmsinaz on February 7, 2010 at 3:57 PM
Celebrating life demeans women, and revokes their right to chose abortion I tell you!
Rode Werk on February 7, 2010 at 3:58 PM
I demand getting back the old “cents” symbol on my keyboard…
disa on February 7, 2010 at 3:59 PM
I threw up in my mouth a little bit. Love and pride for ones offspring? We live in bad times my friends, bad times…
/S
This reminds me of one of my favorite quotes from the Simpsons, after hearing Ned Flanders thanking the lord for a glorious day while acting as principal, superintendent Chaumer’s says the following:
“That sounds like a prayer, a prayer in a public school, God has no place in these walls!”
The people getting up in arms about this ad really need to cool their jets. I have seen far worse on TV and in commercials.
Gatsu on February 7, 2010 at 3:59 PM
I think the offensive part is Tim’s mom calling him Timmy can you imagine all of his friends making fun of him calling him Timmy now instead of Tim.
/sarc
Brat4life on February 7, 2010 at 3:59 PM
They probably do – it was covered on “That 70′s Show.”
disa on February 7, 2010 at 4:00 PM
Life isn’t worth living anymore.
Kini on February 7, 2010 at 4:00 PM
I think that’s the point, really. The ad doesn’t need to be overtly pro-life, because people already know what it’s about from all the controversy.
And by making it so innocuous, Focus on the Family makes NOW look foolish Very shrewd.
crr6 on February 7, 2010 at 4:01 PM
Oh, you poor sod. Tortured for 30 seconds at a time. It’s unbearable.
disa on February 7, 2010 at 4:01 PM
That’s it…That is the Commercial that has riled up the feathers and dandruff of everyone?….OMFG…Talk about judging a book by it’s cover…..
hawkman on February 7, 2010 at 4:01 PM
Who the hell does this woman think she is? What woman has the right to proud of her son?
Wade on February 7, 2010 at 4:03 PM
OT:
FOX reporting that federal officials and Homeland Security are on the scene at the natural gas plant explosion is CT.
Hmmmmmm.
IrishEi on February 7, 2010 at 4:04 PM
I wonder how many people opposed to this ad were defending Justin Timberlake ripping off Janet Jackson’s clothes during half time.
hepcat on February 7, 2010 at 4:04 PM
explosion IN CT.
IrishEi on February 7, 2010 at 4:05 PM
I’m pro-choice and find nothing offensive about this ad. Mrs. Tebow is clearly proud of her handsome, accomplished son. He clearly adores his mom. I’m also not offended that she chose to continue her pregnancy despite the scary warnings or that they’ve both chosen to share a quite inspiring story. Good for both of them.
Frankly, it makes a nice change from ads about erectile dysfunction, constipation prevention, and the incessant ads from one of the local political candidates.
Jill1066 on February 7, 2010 at 4:07 PM
He could have been a f***ing, retard democrat.
Rahm
ambuldog on February 7, 2010 at 4:08 PM
I can’t watch it until it gets a video rating posted that lets me know that it doesn’t have any adult situations, language, or glaring stares like my Jewish grandmother used to use.
Cybergeezer on February 7, 2010 at 4:09 PM
ELF maybe? Van Jones and Assoc.? Al Qaeda?
No… DHS will be reporting Tea Party activists.
katy on February 7, 2010 at 4:11 PM
If you are not conditioned to liberals hating most of their conscious lives, then you must be living under a rock. If they weren’t hating the Tebows, it would just be something or somebody else. No news here.
volsense on February 7, 2010 at 4:11 PM
Did you idiot Pro-Death types really think the NFL would allow something truly controversial?
CWforFreedom on February 7, 2010 at 4:12 PM
Heh. Sadly true.
IrishEi on February 7, 2010 at 4:13 PM
Agree there. But I suspect we will get our share of E.D. ads still.
CWforFreedom on February 7, 2010 at 4:14 PM
I hope the “controversial” commercial is as good as that one.
p0s3r on February 7, 2010 at 4:14 PM
Next thing you know the Liberals and MSM will be calling the Tea Party folks the “Mob”. Oh I forgot, they already have.
yoda on February 7, 2010 at 4:15 PM
Wait What? Hyundai’s sponsoring this commercial?
I think I just found a new second favorite car company.
Chaz706 on February 7, 2010 at 4:15 PM
Tebow’s mother bears a suspicious resemblance to a MILF.
Just sayin’.
misterpeasea on February 7, 2010 at 4:18 PM
Ah, just saw it on TV. That was nothing. Wonder if the other one will be more “controversial”
El_Terrible on February 7, 2010 at 4:20 PM
That was shocking, outrageous, racist, homophobic, and downright anti-thought. /s
Mojave Mark on February 7, 2010 at 4:21 PM
You’re so right. Too bad Obama and his band of bandits can’t take all the suttle hints that make them look foolish—–like losing three liberal district elections, hundreds of thousands marching on D.C. Innocuous indeed.
Rovin on February 7, 2010 at 4:21 PM
I’m guessing they just recorded it off the tube and Hyundai had the commercial before them.
El_Terrible on February 7, 2010 at 4:21 PM
I’m mortified. MORTIFIED I TELLS YA!
Heh. I wonder how much Planned Parenthood spent on their “counter attack” ad? $2.9M? Good for you, ya silly bastids..
Key West Reader on February 7, 2010 at 4:21 PM
The strong Liberal reaction to this and similar ads is very simple. Women who have had abortions simply do not want to be reminded of that fact. If the choice to carry a baby to term can be seen as noble, then the choice to abort must be something less than that, or so their thinking goes. I think they are right. It’s nothing more than a case of “the truth hurts.”
azkenreid on February 7, 2010 at 4:22 PM
Huh. They already did
Bob's Kid on February 7, 2010 at 4:22 PM
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