An insurance company that ran a dark Super Bowl ad about how home accidents kill children has defended its commercial.
Nationwide Insurance did not apologize for running the commercial during Super Bowl XLIX on Sunday, saying the “sole purpose of this message was to start a conversation, not sell” a product.
In a statement, Nationwide said: “We want to build awareness of an issue that is near and dear to all of us: the safety and wellbeing of our children. We knew the ad would spur a variety of reactions.”
The ad features a young boy who says: “I’ll never learn to ride a bike, or get cooties.” As he imagines fairytale adventures of growing up in an exciting, picturesque world, accompanied by his dog, the boy says: “I’ll never learn to fly, or travel the world with my best friend, and I’ll never get married.”
He then explains why his dreams will never come true: “I won’t grow up because I died from an accident.”
The ad then fades to shots of an overflowing bathtub, chemicals below a sink, a television shattered all over the floor.
The ad, Nationwide said, shows how “preventable injuries around the home are the leading cause of childhood deaths in America”.
“Most people don’t know that,” the statement continued, before saying the Nationwide ad had “started a fierce conversation”.
Many of the participants in that conversation accused Nationwide of fearmongering among parents for the purpose of selling insurance. Others were shocked by the starkly bleak tone that contrasted with the relative good cheer of other ads and the Super Bowl in general.
"Wish my death could made some sweet bank for my parents." -- Nationwide. #SuperBowl
— Patton Oswalt (@pattonoswalt) February 2, 2015
Nationwide did not address many of these criticisms, instead pitching a website to better inform parents about safe homes and defending its credentials: “Nationwide has been working with experts for more than 60 years to make homes safer.”
“While some did not care for the ad,” the statement read, “we hope it served to begin a dialogue to make safe happen for children everywhere.”
Super Bowl ads are coveted, given the massive numbers who watch the game. The commercials have become a platform for entertaining marketing and clever ad work. This year’s ads included a second ad by Nationwide, which struck a completely different tone through a comedic short featuring Mindy Kaling and Matt Damon.
The unusual reach of Super Bowl commercials entails exorbitant prices for ad time. A 30-second commercial during Sunday’s game cost an estimated $4.5m. Nationwide’s controversial ad ran for 47 seconds.
