What's behind the banning of the UCC ads?

[Harold F. Schiffman]

What's behind the banning of the UCC ads?

When ads for the United Church of Christ first appeared on some mainstream
cable television stations, people were shocked. Shocked because a church
was advertising a positive message of love and understanding, instead of
the general line of judgement and condemnation. The UCC's ad creative
spoke of a ministry of love and acceptance, with a particular emphasis on
the acceptance of gay people into the fold of Christianity. The message --
as well as the UCC's endorsement of gay marriage -- viewed as refreshing
by some, is reviled by the Christian Right (called "radical") and
apparently by Spanish language television in this country: The UCC
reported this week that the Spanish version of its 30-second commercial,
"Ejector," was turned down last Thursday by NBC Universal, a family of
broadcast and cable networks that includes Telemundo. A separate company,
Univision which also owns the Telefutura and Galavision networks similarly
rejected the denominations ad on the same day.

The objectionable part of this ad, it seems, is the gay element. The ad
depicts the exclusion of gay couples, immigrants and the disabled in the
church realm and offers the message "God doesn't reject people. Neither do
we." A similar ad in English depicts the church as a fortress of a place
guarded by bouncers who keep gay couples out. That ad was also rejected by
the big networks. But could it be just about the ad? I think it's more
about the UCC's split from the rest of the mainline Christian churches by
publicly endorsing gay marriage. In July 2005, the UCC asked its member
churches to create "...wedding policies 'that do not discriminate against
couples based on gender' and support laws granting equal marriage rights
for gays and lesbians." According to the Christian Post:

The UCC, which became the first mainline denomination to sanction
homosexual marriages last July, has a tradition of support for gays and
lesbians, becoming the first major Christian denomination to ordain an
openly gay minister in 1972. By 1985, the UCC adopted an open and
affirming position toward homosexuals, though less than 10 percent of the
congregations adopted that policy, according to the Rev. Dr. Bob Thompson,
head of Faithful and Welcoming Churches. UCCs endorsement last year of
same-sex marriage, however, has drawn notable criticism from Christian
conservatives both outside the denomination and within, stirring debate
and dividing dozens of its congregations.

GLAAD has worked incessantly for the past few years to combat homophobic
potrayals and rhetoric on Spanish language television, with some real
progress made in applying pressure to these networks via their
advertisers. Unfortunately, it seems that the conservative roots are still
there. I continue to see negative potrayals of gays and lesbians on
Univision and Telemundo, on programs ranging from gossip shows (the most
blaring example is Felipe Viel's "Franchis" character on "Escandalo TV")
to news programs. An ad of acceptance like that of UCC could make a
positive mark on the current Spanish language TV landscape. Alas, the only
Spanish language network currently running the ad is Azteca America. But
it's not just Spanish-language television. Even LOGO, the gay and
lesbian-themed network owned by Viacom has rejected the ads, since the
decision comes from Viacom and affects all of its networks. This shows
that if you aren't in line with the current political agenda of hate and
exclusion, you can't play ball.

Read about the UCC's stand against the Christian right in today's NYT
(registration required)

See the ads in English and Spanish on GLAAD's web site.

http://vivirlatino.com/2006/04/07/whats-behind-the-banning-of-the-ucc-ads.php