CBS, Hallmark Reject Pro-Life Ad that Shows Ultrasounds, Babies: 'Too Controversial'

Michael Foust | ChristianHeadlines.com Contributor | Updated: Jun 08, 2021
CBS, Hallmark Reject Pro-Life Ad that Shows Ultrasounds, Babies: 'Too Controversial'

CBS, Hallmark Reject Pro-Life Ad that Shows Ultrasounds, Babies: 'Too Controversial'

Three major television networks have rejected a 30-second commercial by a national pro-life group that promotes the humanity of the unborn.

The commercial by the Susan B. Anthony List is part of an initial $2 million television ad campaign and shows images of ultrasounds and newborn babies as a narrator talks. 

But the ad won't be airing on CBS, Hallmark or CMT (Country Music Television) after being rejected, according to The Daily Wire.   

CBS told Susan B. Anthony List that "issue-oriented advertisements that are designed for the purpose of presenting views or influencing legislation on issues that are controversial by general public consensus are unacceptable." 

CMT said the ad was "controversial." 

Hallmark also rejected the ad. 

Susan B. Anthony List posted the ad on its Twitter account, urging the pro-life community to share it. (The ad also can be viewed on the organization's Facebook page.)

"BIG MEDIA corporations like @CBS & the @hallmarkchannel BANNED our pro-life TV ad, claiming it's too 'controversial,'" the tweet said. "The right to LIFE is NOT controversial! Click the button below to BYPASS them and share this important ad everywhere!"

The narrator in the ad says: "Five decades of medical breakthroughs. Every age group has more opportunity to live except one. The unborn still fall victim to outdated laws. Science tells us that at 15 weeks, these babies have formed faces. They smile. They yawn. They feel pain. It's why European countries ban late-term abortion. In five decades, we've learned they are just like us. Isn't it time the law reflects the science?"

A Susan B. Anthony List news release said the ad was a "response to news" that the U.S. Supreme Court will review a Mississippi law that prohibits most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy.

"The science is simple: unborn children are human beings and deserve protection," said Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List. "By 15 weeks, children in the womb have fully formed noses and lips, eyelids and eyebrows; they can suck their thumb, and even feel pain. Across the country, state lawmakers acting on the will of the people have introduced nearly 550 pro-life bills – 70 already enacted so far this year – aimed at recognizing these facts and humanizing our laws. We are eager to further educate the nation about these realities and are hopeful that the law will soon catch up to the science."

Photo courtesy: ©Susan B. Anthony List


Michael Foust has covered the intersection of faith and news for 20 years. His stories have appeared in Baptist Press, Christianity Today, The Christian Post, the Leaf-Chroniclethe Toronto Star and the Knoxville News-Sentinel.



CBS, Hallmark Reject Pro-Life Ad that Shows Ultrasounds, Babies: 'Too Controversial'