Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Blumenthal, McCain press ‘paid patriotism’ ban at sports games

  • Other
  • by Ana Radelat
  • November 9, 2015
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"
A halftime tribute

A halftime tribute

Washington – Tributes to U.S. troops at New England Patriot games and other professional sporting events are wasteful “paid patriotism,” costing taxpayers millions of dollars, say several U.S. senators, including Richard Blumenthal, who have pressured the Pentagon to stop the practice.

A recently released Senate report said that, since the end of 2011, the military has spent $6.8 million on sports marketing contracts that pay for tributes and other events, including the honoring of American soldiers as a recruitment strategy.

Blumenthal, in partnership with Sens. John McCain, R-Ariz., and Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., has been working for months to end the practice.

“Honoring our hometown heroes should definitely have been done, but without fattening the bottom line of our sports franchises,” Blumenthal said.

Blumenthal and McCain included a provision in the defense authorization bill the Senate is expected to approve this week that would bar the Pentagon from spending money on  tributes. Under pressure from the senators, the Pentagon has said it will end this type of marketing.

But McCain said he’s not convinced the Pentagon has disclosed all of its business dealings with sports teams and believes the cost to taxpayers may be much higher than reported.

“Over the course of the effort, we discovered the startling fact that the Defense Department cannot accurately account for how many contracts it has awarded or how much has been spent,” the Senate report said.

The Senate report said paid tributes included on-field color guards, enlistment and reenlistment ceremonies, performances of the national anthem, full-field flag details, ceremonial first pitches and puck drops. The National Guard paid teams for the “opportunity” to sponsor military appreciation nights and to recognize its birthday, the report said.

“Most fans had no idea they were viewing a paid marketing campaign,” Blumenthal said.

Most of the money for tributes went to NFL teams.

On Monday NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell released a letter to McCain and Flake that said the NFL is conducting an audit of all payments to professional football teams from all the military branches and the National Guard.

“If we find that inappropriate payments were made, they will be refunded in full,” Goodell wrote. “We will share the results of this review with you.”

Goodell also said the military had contracted with individual NFL teams to promote recruitment efforts, using multiple platforms to maximize the reach of their message, such as ads placed in game programs and on scoreboards or recruitment kiosks in our stadiums.”

Goodell said, “These efforts are intended to be separate and apart from the NFL’s longstanding recognition of the service members and their families who have dedicated their lives to serving this great country.”

Patriots big on ‘paid patriotism’

The senators’ report said that wasn’t always the case, and that contracts with teams often included items the senators considered “paid patriotism,” including on-field tributes and perks for military personnel.

The New England Patriots were paid $700,000 for such activities over three years, second only to the Atlanta Falcons, who received $879,000 from the Pentagon over four years, the report said. The New York Jets were paid $327,500 over three years.

Major League Baseball, and professional basketball, hockey and basketball also participated in “paid patriotism,” the report said, with the Boston Red Sox receiving $100,000 over two years and the New York Mets $51,000 in one year.

The New York Football Giants and the New York Yankees were not included in the report.

Red Sox spokesman Zineb Curran said pre-game ceremonies and in-game tributes at Fenway Park were not part of a military sponsored program.

“The Red Sox’ longstanding sponsorship agreement with the Massachusetts National Guard, which is highlighted in the report, is for marketing and advertising of the guard – specifically LED advertising and in-park tabling – not for pregame ceremonies or military honors during the game,” Curran said.

Other sports teams have also said the money they were paid for recruitment efforts were not linked to patriotic tributes, but often that line was blurred.

The money paid the New England Patriots went to recognize a Massachusetts Army National Guard soldier at each home game as part of a “true patriot” promotion.

The Patriots’ contracts with the Pentagon also gave the National Guard season tickets, training camp passes and access to hospitality suites during the game. The Senate report questioned whether these types of perks were used by service members participating in the on-field presentations or the recruiters working the events.

“We believe that whether such tickets were originally intended to be used, and were in fact used, for the personal benefit of DOD personnel warrants further investigation,” the report said.

Blumenthal said “some of the luxury seats were going to people who were not being honored.”

The Patriots did not respond to a request for comment.

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ana Radelat Ana has written about politics and policy in Washington, D.C.. for Gannett, Thompson Reuters and UPI. She was a special correspondent for the Miami Herald, and a regular contributor to The New York TImes, Advertising Age and several other publications. She has also worked in broadcast journalism, for CNN and several local NPR stations. She is a graduate of the University of Maryland School of Journalism.

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
Panel recommends small, inflationary pay hike for state officials
by Keith M. Phaneuf

Connecticut's part-time legislature hasn't received a pay hike since 2001. The annual base-pay for senators and representatives is $28,000.

The game is changing. Chris Murphy says he’s ready to play.
by Mark Pazniokas

The question for Sen. Chris Murphy no longer is where might he go next, but what can he do now.

Joe Biden takes office: ‘At this hour, my friends, democracy has prevailed.’
by Mark Pazniokas

America took a deep breath and watched Joe Biden uneventfully inaugurated outside a Capitol invaded two weeks ago by rioters.

Lamont sets the stage for a debate on marijuana taxation by mid-2022
by Keith M. Phaneuf

The governor's draft bill proposes taxing marijuana and erasing convictions for possession that occurred prior to Oct. 1, 2015.

Legislative leaders support extension of Lamont’s emergency powers during COVID
by Jacqueline Rabe Thomas

The governor's emergency powers expire Feb. 9 unless he asks lawmakers for an extension within 72 hours of that date.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion Miguel Cardona, who are you?
by Ann Policelli Cronin

When I ask Connecticut teachers about Miguel Cardona, those who know him or have worked with him say that he is really nice guy who knows what the challenges in our classrooms are, knows how to help teachers to improve their teaching, and respects public schools. All good. But what is his vision for teaching and learning that he will bring to the U.S. Department of Education?

Opinion Connecticut needs a strong two-party system, this Democrat says
by Edward Marcus

J.R. Romano’s recent resignation as the state’s Republican Party chair has brought into focus the need for a viable opposition party in Connecticut. It is not healthy politics when everything is totally controlled by one party:  the legislature, the governorship, and most of the major municipalities in our state.

Opinion Connecticut’s $100 million college shell game
by Stephen Adair

The plan to consolidate the 12 community colleges in Connecticut into one college with 12 campuses is called “Students First,” which is ironic because it does not fund students first.  It funds a new administration in a new, statewide bureaucracy. The Board of Regents (BOR) and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system office […]

Opinion Inconsistent television captioning is a barrier to equal access
by Jeffrey Bravin and Barbara Cassin

Our world long ago entered the age of the 24-hour news cycle, and a full understanding of the “who, what, when, where and why” of the news is critical for deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing citizens. Yet, Connecticut’s inconsistent quality of television captioning locks our community out of the complete sense of what is happening.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO