Pentagon shown to be funneling tax dollars to professional sports teams

[Jukesgrrl]

There has been quite a bit of talk here on C-D in recent month of what some are calling appropriate displays of gratitude to our military that others interpret more as ostentatious displays of hero-worship to soldiers who are paid to do a job.

A new wrinkle in that debate cropped up this week. It turns out that what has appeared to be generous displays of thanks to military units by professional sports teams have actually been military "product placements" paid for with Americans' tax dollars. Payments that took place in secret.

Arizona Senator Jeff Flake, not one know for dovish or anti-military views, was the first to call out the New York Jets for the $377,000 the team accepted from the Department of Defense and the New Jersey Guard between 2011 to 2014 for in-stadium salutes and other advertising that appeared during Jets football games. It turns out Sen. Flake had only revealed the tip of an iceberg.

Follow up reporting by journalists from New Jersey Advance Media found that there is no reason to blame only the New York Jets for insincerity in the love they've been heaping on the troops. In an article published on nj.com reporters write, "From 2011 to 2014, the Department of Defense paid $5.4 million to NFL teams for salutes to the military and other advertising, with $5.3 million coming from the National Guard, according to federal contracts."

Teams signing lucrative contracts with the U.S. Army and National Guard: Atlanta Falcons, Baltimore Ravens, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Browns, Dallas Cowboys, Kansas City Chiefs, Minnesota Vikings, and St. Louis Rams. Payments ranged from $60,000 to the Rams to more than $1 million to the Falcons. The Pittsburgh Steelers and Miami Dolphins received $36,000 and $20,000, respectively, from the U.S. Air Force, and the Indianapolis Colts got a grand total of $620,000 from both sources.

The report adds, "Flake said most in the general public believe the [in-stadium pro-military presentations] were heartfelt salutes by their hometown football team, not an advertising campaign paid for with their money. The Guard defended the arrangement as an effective recruitment tool for the force, and the Jets pointed out numerous ways they support the military" for no remuneration. Since the Flake report appeared, a New Jersey senator has called for the NFL teams that received the money to donate it to military-related charities.

Jets' salutes honor N.J. National Guard but cost taxpayers | NJ.com
Which NFL teams got your federal tax dollars? | NJ.com

After nj.com published its reports, Keith Olbermann of ESPN followed up with a report on his May 11, 2015, program saying that the NFL is not the only sports league receiving such payments via the Pentagon. His research showed that "salutes to the troops" by the National Basketball League, Major League Baseball, the National Hockey League, as well as some minor league baseball and NCAA college teams were also paid for by the Pentagon using tax dollars. How much this all adds up to is anyone's guess, but per soldier recruited, you can bet it's not a good return on an investment.

The Washington Post recently reported that National Guard advertising placed with NASCAR has not been at all successful. Apparently the guard needs one million hiring leads to acquire its annual recruiting goal of 50,000 new members. The Guard paid $88 million to NASCAR between 2011-13 for car sponsorships and other advertising. Records show that in 2012, 24,800 prospects told the Guard they inquired about joining in response to NASCAR advertising. Of that group, only 20 people met the Guard's qualifications. And of that 20, not a single individual was recruited. Guard representatives admit the program was a failure but still continue sponsorship of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s car.

National Guard’s NASCAR sponsorship doesn’t pay off despite presence of Dale Earnhardt Jr. - The Washington Post

Here's more on the NFL situation from Pro Football Talk, an NBC Sports presentation:
14 NFL teams took tax dollars for patriotic pregame displays | ProFootballTalk

[Magnatomicflux]

Of course it's advertising. I don't know why it seems like a big surprise to people. Like the NFL, NASCAR, or a University for cryin' out loud, is going to pay for all the manpower/time/fuel/maintenance to have a B-2, a B-52, or several A-10's, or F-18's, to spend an hour or two in the sky for a 20 second fly-by to pay tribute to the men and women who serve.

A B-2 for example, costs $ 169,313 per flight hour.

That B-2 ought to make people want to sign up though. But not everyone can fly a bomber, so let's have it flanked by 2, F-22's! Of course, each F-22 is going to run you $68,362 per flight hour.


It's a mind **** by the government, and that's it.

Looks cool though!



https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&rct=j...31511996581359

[MTQ3000]

1. We have an all volunteer armed forces. If they don't advertise, there probably won't be enough recruits.

2. The military has historically advertised for recruitment without any controversy. For example, they do plenty of TV and radio ads.

3. Maybe the cost may at first seem very high (especially in total), but consider that sports games are broadcasted to a wide audience especially if it is a nationally televised game. I bet the cost is much lower than a TV buy for comparable time slot/rating/length.

4. I bet the thinking is that this type of "advertising" targets people who are most likely to enlist as a demographic (you can Google to figure out what those criteria might be).

5. It's kind of sad and funny that:

The Washington Post recently reported that National Guard advertising placed with NASCAR has not been at all successful. Apparently the guard needs one million hiring leads to acquire its annual recruiting goal of 50,000 new members. The Guard paid $88 million to NASCAR between 2011-13 for car sponsorships and other advertising. Records show that in 2012, 24,800 prospects told the Guard they inquired about joining in response to NASCAR advertising. Of that group, only 20 people met the Guard's qualifications. And of that 20, not a single individual was recruited. Guard representatives admit the program was a failure but still continue sponsorship of Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s car.

Here are qualifications for enlisting with the Guard:

To join the National Guard without prior service, you must meet these mandatory requirements:
Be between the ages of 17 and 35
Be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident
Be a at least a junior in high school, or have a high school diploma or a GED certificate
Meet medical, physical and moral requirements

Based on this, the NASCAR advertisement was very successful in attracting inquiries - 24,800 of them in just 3 years!!! Out of the 24,800 people who wanted to enlist thanks to NASCAR advertisement, only 200 (0.8%) can meet those very basic requirements. You'd think that this was the Navy SEAL, not the National Guard. I won't comment what this says about NASCAR fans but draw your own conclusions after watching the crowd at the race.

Mick