Super Bowl ads will tout Jesus ‘gets us’ to the masses

The religiously wary, the spiritually curious — and anyone inclined to appeal to a higher power on game day — are the target audience for a Super Bowl ad campaign with a simple message: Jesus loves them. A group that includes wealthy Christian boosters is using the biggest megaphone TV marketing money can buy on Sunday to spread the word with two new ads that proclaim “He Gets Us.” They hope to counter the notion that religion is used to divide people, spending about $20 million to reach more than 100 million viewers at a time when the nation’s Christian population — and religious affiliation of any kind — are in decline. Super Bowl ads draw enormous attention — sometimes too much — so any company or organization considering spending $6.5 million for 30 seconds of air time needs to weigh the pros and cons, experts say. “It’s incredibly powerful because you really get to reach people, but you also are inviting lots of discussion and scrutiny and feedback,” said Tim Calkins, a Northwestern University marketing professor. There just isn’t a huge need to spend millions on Super Bowl ads about Jesus, said Putz of the Faith & Sports Institute.