Soft bigotry

The networks banned THIS ad for being "too controversial"? Watch the ad, read the networks' case (below), and judge for yourself whether this ad should run. (Then read Josh Marshall's blog, which has covered this nicely. Having "worked" in journalism before, I understand that it's the media outlet's prerogative to pick and choose which ads it will run, and that it is under no obligation to run any advertisement. But how controversial is this ad, really? And are they so worried that enough nit-picking bigots will boycott their stations? (If they are, then America truly is in a sad place right now.) Here's the reasoning, according to a written explanation the United Church of Christ got from CBS and NBC:

The CBS and NBC television networks are refusing to run a 30-second television ad from the United Church of Christ because its all-inclusive welcome has been deemed "too controversial." The ad, part of the denomination's new, broad identity campaign set to begin airing nationwide on Dec. 1, states that -- like Jesus -- the United Church of Christ seeks to welcome all people, regardless of ability, age, race, economic circumstance or sexual orientation. According to a written explanation from CBS, the United Church of Christ is being denied network access because its ad implies acceptance of gay and lesbian couples -- among other minority constituencies -- and is, therefore, too "controversial." "Because this commercial touches on the exclusion of gay couples and other minority groups by other individuals and organizations," reads an explanation from CBS, "and the fact the Executive Branch has recently proposed a Constitutional Amendment to define marriage as a union between a man and a woman, this spot is unacceptable for broadcast on the [CBS and UPN] networks."