Fox rejects 'Jesus hates Obama' Super Bowl ad, according to site creator Richard Belfry

BY ALIYAH SHAHID
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Saturday, January 22nd 2011, 1:55 PM



 

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A screen shot of the controversial "Jesus hates Obama" commercial

Fox has rejected a controversial Super Bowl ad from conservative comedy site JesusHatesObama.com, according to the site's creator.

Richard Belfry insists the proposed 30-second-ad, which depicts bobble-head versions of President Obama and a scowling Jesus, is just a joke.

"Do I really believe that Jesus hates Obama? Absolutely not," Belfry, a comedian based in L.A. who sells Jesus Hates Obama apparel on his site, told the Daily News.

The company admits on its site that it doesn't really hate Obama. Belfry insisted he was merely trying poke fun of the Obama Administration and to also sell his merchandise.

The site received an e-mail from Ruth Levenson, Fox's vice president for broadcast standards and practices earlier this month that said the commercial was "not acceptable to air on FOX."

The group then tried to appeal the decision, and that too was rejected.

A spokesman for Fox told CNN that the network wouldn't confirm nor deny whether the commercial had been rejected, saying it was the company's policy to not "provide information about the materials that may or may not have been submitted."

The commercial, set to the "Battle Hymn of the Republic," shows the Obama bobblehead falling into a fish bowl, at which time Jesus appears in the frame donned in the company's t-shirts with a smile on his face.

Belfry said the commercial, which would have aired before kickoff, sold for $2.3 million. He said the money would have come from $3 million he previously received from private investors.

The Super Bowl is no stranger to controversial commercials. Last year, an anti-abortion commercial by conservative Christian group Focus on the Family caused an uproar.

Belfry said he's sold more than 70,000 Jesus Hates Obama T-shirts out of the back of his car and through word of mouth since the company launched in 2009.

He said he was shocked by Fox's decision.

"They don't realize it's a joke," he said.