CBS Rejects Super Bowl Ad For The Legalization of Medical Marijuana

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Super Bowl Commercial For Medical Marijuana Shut Down

Though The NFL and the Super Bowl in particular are known for running huge ads about alcohol, it looks like they’re not quite ready to put their money behind medical marijuana.

According to reports from Bloomberg, Acreage Holdings claims that CBS cut a medical marijuana ad from the televised portion of the Super Bowl after viewing a rough outline of the commercial. The multi-state marijuana company tells the publication that the goal of the advertisement was to “create an advocacy campaign for constituents who are being lost in the dialogue” and thought that the most-watched event of the year could help push this same narrative.

Although medical marijuana is legal in over 30 states as of now, federal restrictions hinder many from actually obtaining their cannabis. Let’s look at Oklahoma, for example. Even though medical marijuana is legal in the state, the Tulsa World reports that it is against the law for a doctor to actually prescribe the substance. This is due to the fact that marijuana is still classified by the federal government as a schedule one controlled substance–which means doctors are prohibited from discussing strains and dosages with their patients as that would be considered aiding and abetting, which is punishable by law.

These nuanced–and quite frankly, confusing–difficulties that occur around the country are the reason that many feel the commercial would have been informative and beneficial airing during the Super Bowl. Now, fans are calling out the league’s hypocrisy for choosing not to air the ad because, like we mentioned before, the big game is known for giving tons of air time to beer. And we all know network television has no problem airing commercials for prescription drugs.