Two US networks are refusing to air a slick, highly confrontational ad by a group protesting plans for a mosque near Ground Zero in New York, US media reported Thursday.
The ad takes a radical stand against the “monstrous 13-storey mosque” which supporters bill as a chance to heal post-9/11 tensions and which so far has support from New York City officials.
US media, including the Politico website, quoted sources at NBC and CBS networks saying they were refusing to screen the video, titled “Kill the Ground Zero Mosque.”
“On 9/11 they declared war against us,” the video says against a backdrop of militants firing weapons and footage of hijacked airplanes slamming into the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001.
“That mosque is a monument to their victory and an invitation to more.... Join the fight to kill the Ground Zero mosque.”
NBC Universal’s advertising standards manager Jennifer Riley wrote that the ad never clarifies whether references to “they” mean terrorists or the Islamic organization sponsoring the mosque project. “Consequently, the ad is not acceptable,” she said, Politico reported.
The video has already received more than 139,000 hits on YouTube and is funded by an organization called National Republican Trust, which is not part of the Republican Party.
Supporters say the proposed Islamic center and mosque two blocks from Ground Zero will transform negative stereotypes about Islam that have been widespread in the city and across the country since 9/11.
The group behind the project has already purchased the building and is waiting for permission from the city landmarks commission to raze the structure and begin construction.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other prominent city officials have spoken in favor of the idea.