- Michael Bloomberg's presidential campaign is planning to run a Super Bowl ad about gun control created by politically connected marketing firm Siegel Strategies.
- Two sources said the campaign screened three other ads that were deemed too safe for the game. Jeff Goodby confirmed that his agency, Goodby Silverstein & Partners, created one of the ads.
- Another source said the Goodby ad, which is expected to air later in the election cycle, strikes an upbeat tone, imagining a 2022 America with Bloomberg as president.
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Michael Bloomberg's presidential campaign, which paid an estimated $11 million-plus to run a minute-long ad during Super Bowl LIV, chose a potentially risky spot on gun control after rejecting several other submissions it considered too safe, according to two people with direct knowledge of the campaign's strategy.
These people, whose identities are known to Business Insider but spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the matter publicly, said the Bloomberg campaign chose the gun control ad titled "George" after extensive testing because they thought the other efforts were not as aggressive in going after President Trump.
A spokesperson for the Bloomberg campaign wouldn't comment.
The Bloomberg campaign screened ads created by several agencies before settling on a gun control spot
Jeff Goodby, co-founder and co-chairman of Goodby Silverstein & Partners, which is part of holding company Omnicom, confirmed that his agency made an ad that the Bloomberg campaign rejected. He said he believed the ad would air later in the election cycle. He wouldn't comment further.
According to the other sources, the campaign screened four potential Super Bowl spots: Goodby's, one from Human, a New York agency co-founded by a veteran of Barack Obama's 2008 campaign, and two versions of the ad below, which stars Calandrian Kemp, mother of a football player who was killed by gun violence.
The two gun control ads were created by Siegel Strategies, a politically connected marketing firm that has worked with Bloomberg's Independence USA political action committee and nonprofit Everytown for Gun Safety and other center-left organizations.
Spokespeople for Human and Siegel Strategies did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
Sources say at least one ad focused on a post-Trump future under President Bloomberg
The Goodby Silverstein & Partners ad strikes an upbeat tone by envisioning a 2022 America with Bloomberg as president, said one source, who had direct knowledge of the ad. The other source said the Bloomberg campaign determined that the "George" control ad tested best with audiences, deeming the other efforts too safe.
The Trump 2020 campaign is set to run two 30-second ads during the game. The first, which debuted today, is titled "Stronger, Safer, More Prosperous" and cites wage growth and unemployment numbers.