Legal Group Calls on NFL to Revise Policy for Church Super Bowl Parties
The Rutherford Institute, a non-profit law firm that largely offers assistance to various Christian causes, has contacted the National Football League (NFL) to help arrange a compromise over this year’s church Super Bowl controversies.
As part of the negotiations, churches would be allowed to view the Super Bowl in large groups in the next year without being in danger of breaking copyright laws.
The discussions are a result of a string of complaints from Christians around the nation that were not allowed to watch the Super Bowl as part of their church gatherings. Churchgoers argued that the NFL was creating a double standard, allowing for-profit businesses to show the games while snubbing local congregations.
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“It is also hypocritical to allow for-profit entities like sports bars and certain restaurants to publicly display the Super Bowl, while prohibiting churches and other non-profit entities from doing so,” explained John W. Whitehead, founder of the Rutherford Institute, in a letter to the NFL. “If the NFL has no objection to alcohol-laden viewing parties at sports bars, it makes no sense that you would object to football fans gathering at more wholesome family-oriented events to support their teams.”
The institute notes that it is a constitutional right for groups to gather for religious and social purposes, and as long as churches do not ask for attendance fees or use the “Super Bowl” name in their promotions, they should be able to freely watch the big game.
There still remains the issue of screen size, however. Many churches had to cancel their events, because their display was deemed too large, over 55 inches.
As the main focus, the Rutherford Institute emphasizes need for change in this aspect.
“It is absurd for the NFL to persist in forbidding the display of events such as the Super Bowl,” noted Whitehead in the letter, “which are available without charge over the public airways, at social gatherings where no profit is to be made from display solely because of the size of the viewing screen.”
The non-profit group offers two alternatives. First, they urge the NFL to allow exemptions for churches to show the championship game, no matter what the television or screen size. Otherwise, they want the NFL to pioneer an effort to amend the Copyright Act to accommodate non-commercial interests of non-profit institutions, “especially in light of emerging technologies that will eventually render the 55-inch screen restriction wholly unreasonable.”
The controversy became heated when the NFL ordered Fall Creek Baptist Church in Indianapolis to cancel their Super Bowl viewing party a few days before the game on the grounds that the church was using its trademark name in their promotions in addition to the church’s plan to charge a fee to attend.
Even after dropping the fee, which was intended only to pay for snacks, and removing “Super Bowl” from their promotions, the NFL still refused to allow the viewing on the grounds that the screen was too large.
Following Fall Creek, other U.S. churches were forced to either cancel their events, change their screen size, or disregard the NFL’s dictates.
The Rutherford founder said in the letter, “If you are concerned about maintaining public good will and increasing viewership of the Bowl game, then it would seem to be willful and self-defeating to remain set on a course of action that will only succeed in alienating a large portion of the American people who happen to be churchgoers.”
On the web: the full letter from the Rutherford Institute.
