Saying “Super Bowl” has become problematic… but more on that in a bit.
Coronavirus
Let’s start with Covid. The numbers are better. Fewer cases. More vaccine. More shots.
We took my mother-in-law to get her first shot on Saturday at the University Mall in Tampa. It was kind of surreal. A very military operation. Very efficient, too. We were in and out in less than an hour, including the 15 minute waiting period after the shot. I have to congratulate them. They made it as easy as they could.
I wish all the news was good on Covid. It’s not. I was watching Meet the Press on Sunday. Infectious disease expert Dr. Michael Osterholm from the University of Minnesota said he expects another surge in the coming weeks. More contagious mutations are to blame.
In fact, Osterholm said the surge will be “something like we have not seen yet in this country.”
He says the Biden administration should “call an audible” and give as many first doses as possible to try and head this off. That is opposed to holding back the second shot for those who have their first dose.
I expect Dr. Osterholm will be taken seriously. He knows his stuff.
Super Bowl LV
Now for something a little less heavy… the Super Bowl. It’s going to be a crazy, fun and long week around here in Tampa Bay. I’m looking forward to it. Even with Covid restrictions, it’ll be fun.
What’s really strange is what you can and cannot say. How you can refer to the event itself. If you are in the news business, you can say it: “Super Bowl.” If you are not, you can’t say those words. You’re not allowed to use the term for commercial gain. Why? It’s a registered trademark. That’s why you hear “Big Game” a lot.
So… in our news stories on Fox, we can say “Super Bowl” all day. In our commercials promoting our news coverage, we have to say “Big Game.”
Did you see the Wayne’s World skit on SNL? It turned out to be a promo for their Super Bowl UberEats commercial.
What they could and could not say was telling: “We just wanted to say that we’ll see you soon for the game, which for legal reasons cannot be named,”
I get it. Folks pay a lot of money for the opportunity to say “Super Bowl.” I’m probably not allowed to say it on this blog. If more people were reading it, I might get a letter from the NFL.
Who knew? A “cease and desist” would mean I have hit the big time!