Georgia gun manufacturer Daniel Defense remains puzzled by the National Football League’s decision to turn down a “defending your home” commercial the Savannah-area company wanted to run in select markets, including Atlanta, during Super Bowl XLVIII in February.
The ad features a veteran walking through his home and lamenting that “a lot has changed” since he’d returned to civilian life and to his wife and infant child. The vet says his family’s safety is now his highest priority.
“I’m responsible for their protection, and no one has the right to tell me how to defend them,” the vet says. “So I’ve chosen the most effective tool for the job.” The commercial ends with a voice-over and words in big letters: “Daniel Defense. Defending your nation. Defending your home.” Right under the words is the silhouette of a rifle.
Daniel Defense founder Marty Daniel told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday that the 30-second spot, which cost nearly $100,000 to produce, would have cost the company $500,000 to run Feb. 2 in eight markets.
Daniel said he ran a local Super Bowl ad two years ago on NBC in the Savannah area and had been working with an affiliate of Fox, which will be airing the game next year, in making sure the ad met NFL rule requirements this time around.
But just before Thanksgiving, Daniel said he got word from Fox that the ad had been rejected. The NFL could not be reached for comment.
Daniel Defense marketing director Jordan Hunter said the message from the NFL relayed by Fox to the company was, “Unfortunately, we cannot accept your commercial in football/Super Bowl spots due to the rules the NFL itself has set into place for your company’s category.”
Among the NFL’s “prohibited advertising categories” posted online are “firearms, ammunition or other weapons.” The rules, however, state “stores that sell firearms and ammunition (e.g., outdoor stores and camping stores) will be permitted, provided they sell other products and the ads do not mention firearms, ammunition or other weapons.”
Daniel said his commercial should have been accepted because in addition to manufacturing guns at plants near Savannah in Black Creek and in Ridgeland, S.C., the company also sells weapons and other related merchandise at retail at a stand-alone store. He said the ad also never mentions a gun, other than the silhouette at the end.
“We offered to take that [silhouette] off and put an American flag there and they came back with a no,” Daniel said.
Daniel Defense produces custom-made rifles, parts and gear for consumers and law enforcement. The weapons can start at $1,000 and cost more than $3,000.
The company owner said it wanted to use the Super Bowl ad to introduce itself to a wider market. “We think Super Bowl fans have the same values that we do,” Daniel said. “God. Country. The right to defend your family. Those are basic American values.”
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