CINCINNATI – A commercial released Tuesday that poked fun at the recent same-sex marriage fight in Rowan County, Kentucky using Tide products will not air on television.
The commercial, which was not backed by home goods giant Procter & Gamble, was a “spec spot,” said director Mark Nickelsburg.
A spec spot is used as a resume item that commercial directors can take to potential clients, Nickelsburg said.
“It’s basically to show clients what we are capable of,” he said. “It just sort of snowballed from there.”
Thousands of news outlets online wrote about Nickelsburg’s ad after he posted it on Facebook Tuesday.
First a clerk in Kentucky, and now a church lady in Los Angeles! This same sex couple faces yet another obstacle on the...
Posted by Mark Nickelsburg, Director on Tuesday, September 8, 2015
The video drew attention because of its similarities to the Kim Davis case. Davis, a county clerk, has refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples citing her religious beliefs. Davis was jailed for a few days when she refused to comply with a court order mandating that she follow the law.
Nickelsburg’s ad gleefully lampoons the situation and features two men about to get married.
While approaching a church, they are stopped by a stern-looking woman who sanctimoniously decries she won’t let them “blemish the sanctity of marriage!”
Just as the men are about to go off on the Davis stand-in, the woman touches up a stain on one of the grooms’ shirts using a Tide product. After that, she blissfully wishes them well and on their way.
Nickelsburg wrote on his Facebook page: “First a clerk in Kentucky, and now a church lady in Los Angeles! This same sex couple faces yet another obstacle on the way to marriage equality in this spot I directed for Tide to Go.”
This isn’t the first time a commercial has featured Tide products and gay couples.
Tide released an ad only in Canada that featured a gay couple bickering about laundry.
P&G also supported gay marriage via its official Twitter account over the summer. It tweeted in support of LGBT rights and employees even marched in a parade.
We support and respect everyone's right to be who they are. #LoveWins #LoveHasNoLabels #PrideMonth2015 pic.twitter.com/Ti1wWmKfCd
— P&G (@ProcterGamble) June 26, 2015
Thank you for proudly celebrating everyone’s right to be who they are with us! #LoveWins #LoveHasNoLabels #PRIDE pic.twitter.com/07JM6N5AUP
— P&G (@ProcterGamble) June 30, 2015
According to The Advocate, the Human Rights Campaign named P&G one of the "Best Places to Work.” It also has a perfect score on the organization’s Corporate Equality Index.
WCPO has reached out to P&G for comment.
