CBS Denies A Medical Marijuana Super Bowl Ad

Bloomberg reported on Tuesday that Acreage Holdings, a medical marijuana company notably backed by John Boehner, was rejected by CBS when it attempted to buy ad time during next month’s Super Bowl.

Acreage told the publication that despite medical marijuana’s legal status in more than 30 states, the broadcast company “nixed” the ad after seeing a rough cut from the company as the February 3 broadcast looms near. According to some reports, the ad was to show the medical benefits of marijuana for a U.S. veteran.

‘The advertisement aimed to “create an advocacy campaign for constituents who are being lost in the dialogue,” Acreage President George Allen said. Super Bowl airtime would have been the best way to achieve this, he added.

“It’s hard to compete with the amount of attention something gets when it airs during the Super Bowl,” Allen said in a telephone interview.’

USA Today reported that a CBS spokesperson said the company rejected the ad because under CBS broadcast standards it doesn’t accept cannabis-related advertising.

As news of the rejection spread some former and current NFL players reacted to the decision and criticized the league for allowing ads for some substances but not others. The most prominent of those was Philadelphia Eagles defensive end Chris Long, who mentioned the alcohol partnerships the NFL has.

Keep pumping the booze ads, guys. You’re doing great! https://t.co/BpCzBRBjjP

— chris long (@JOEL9ONE) January 22, 2019