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Major League Baseball chose one of its most-watched games of the season to launch a new spot about steroids—a controversial subject that has been a black eye on the sport. But, unlike most MLB ads, this one received no advance publicity.
Baseball officials said the decision to forgo an announcement prior to the 2005 All-Star Game last week in Detroit had to do with last-minute production issues. But sources said MLB didn’t want to detract from the game by focusing more media attention on the steroid scandal.
“They didn’t want a discussion of steroids to interfere with the game,” said one source.
Called “Statue,” the spot was part of an integrated TV, radio, print and Internet campaign, something MLB promised Congress in March it would do to address the steroid issue.
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