FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
January 29, 2003

Contact: Scott Lynch 202.862.9740x3030

Anti-War Ads Pulled by Comcast

Washington, DC - Just hours before they were intended to air, the Comcast cable company pulled advertisements questioning the President's rush to war in Iraq. The ads were created by a diverse group of New Jersey citizens called the AntiWar Video Fund, which includes members of the local Peace Action affiliate, Coalition for Peace Action based in Princeton.

The ads feature a number of Princeton, NJ residents voicing their concerns about a potential war in Iraq. In the 30-second television spot entitled "War and Peace," citizens voice fears ranging from a potential destabilization of the Middle East, to the violation of international law. One resident says, "I think that we have enough problems here at home," and another states, "It is not in the best interest of the American people." In the ad, residents question the impetus for war, and also state that "War on Iraq will not make me safer."

The ads were intended to run in Washington, DC on CNN before and after the State of the Union Address. The New Jersey group spent $5,000 for six 30-second ads. Comcast refused to air the ads and notified the New Jersey group the morning the ads were meant to run. Comcast stated that the ads were pulled because they contained unsubstantiated claims.

"It's ironic that Comcast would pull the ads for containing 'unsubstantiated claims', as the President's case for war on Iraq rests largely on the same," said Scott Lynch, Communications Director at Peace Action, the nation's largest grassroots peace group. "These ads represent the opinions of a growing segment of America that is fundamentally uncomfortable with the President's foreign policy. By not running these ads Comcast is stifling the most important American debate in a generation."

See the ad online at awvf.org.

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Peace Action, (the merger of Sane and The Nuclear Freeze) is the nation's largest peace and disarmament organization with 85,000 members.