For a fun family-and-friends event, the Super Bowl sure generates a lot of controversy: the infamous "wardrobe malfunction" of 2004, Tom Brady's deflate-gate, and that scary, depressing Nationwide Insurance "dead kid" ad that had parents all over the country covering their kids' eyes.
This year, with brewing disputes about protesting the national anthem, football and concussions, player arrests, and accusations of sexual harassment, the Big Game promises to bring up serious issues that aren't necessarily age-appropriate for the show's youngest viewers.
Of course, there will be plenty of good stuff, too. In fact, over the past few years, the Super Bowl has gotten a lot friendlier to families, with entertaining commercials that don't use sex to sell, a cancer-awareness campaign, and more women in the National Football League (NFL), which gives you an opportunity to balance some of the negativity with positive, thoughtful messages of your own.
And even if the issues that come up at your Super Bowl gathering are what the refs would call out of bounds, the best defense is always a good offense. In other words, take advantage of the topics as jumping-off points for conversation with your kids. Here's a roundup of some of the biggest issues surrounding the Super Bowl and ideas for how to engage your kids in conversation:
Even though the NFL, President Trump, and veterans' groups have condemned players for kneeling during the national anthem, the issue is far from settled. In fact, "taking a knee" during "The Star-Spangled Banner" has evolved from a protest against police brutality to an issue of free speech.
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From M&Ms to Skittles to this year's two-ads-in-one commercial for Doritos and Mountain Dew, the Super Bowl is one of the biggest junk food pushers on the planet.
Sure, the ads are entertaining, and enjoying the special Super Bowl promotions that advertisers go all out on is part of the fun of watching the game. But advertising has a huge influence on kids' eating habits -- especially when it uses humor and other tricks that grab kids' attention.
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It's a huge part of Game Day -- and nothing's wrong with enjoying a brewski while you hurl good-natured abuse on the opposing team. But the unmistakable aura of alcohol surrounding the Super Bowl is not lost on kids.
In fact, Anheuser-Busch is one of the event's biggest sponsors, and the cameras pick up beer logos all over the stadium.
Beer commercials tend to promote brand awareness and allegiance, so when kids do start drinking, they'll be inclined to pick the product they know. And they never show the consequences of overdoing it -- which you should always discuss with your kids, especially teens.
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Super Bowl commercials in 2017 celebrated veterans, immigrants, and equal pay for women and this year is projected to bring even more political issues to light.
Among the ads expected to make a statement is Stella Artois's ad featuring Matt Damon and promoting his cause, water.org, which aims to bring clean water to people around the world.
With the #MeToo movement gaining ground, it was bound to hit the year's biggest television event. The answer, at least to many advertisers, is female spokespeople for their brands.
This year, you'll see famous women from various entertainment industries, including actor Tiffany Haddish, singer Iggy Azalea, and model Cindy Crawford as the faces for Groupon, Monster Products, and Pepsi (respectively).
Whatever you think of marketers seizing on female empowerment as a trend (and not, like, the way things should be forever), this is one of those times when it might make more sense to support the company's objective of celebrating women. At least it's a start.