I just recieved this from Hannaford, an advertiser with WGME in Portland, Maine:
Effective immediately, we have reversed our decision to pull our advertising from WGME. We recognize that WGME has been put in an untenable position. It was never our intent to politicize this issue even more, or to punish WGME. We are in the supermarket business, not the political business. We have always made our media buying decisions based on our customer demographic, and will continue to do so.
We truly apologize for any frustration or confusion this may have caused you. We appreciate your patience and understanding in this matter.
(more below...)
This came after their pullout was reported by Maine Public Radio, the Portland Press Herald, and AP.
Moments before I recieved this email, I had just assured someone that posting pullouts was the right thing to do and that these companies are very unlikely to reverse themselves now that they have pulled their ads. I also suggested that letting other companies know that their neighbors or competitors have pulled their ads might help get them to do the same.
Now I'm not so sure.
What do you guys think?
In my response to the above email I pointed out that before they were simply unknowing, now they have made a choice to support this unethical and likely illegal act. By withdrawing, they had chosen not to get involved in politics. By reversing their decision they have now chosen to support a political point of view, one that is being advanced through an abuse of the public trust. Also, while some people at WGME may have been placed in an "untenable" position, the station is wholly owned by Sinclair and that that is where their advertising dollars are going.
You can reach Hannaford at 1-800-341-6393 (corporate offices) or 1-800-213-9040 (customer support).