Political ads voicing support for Kamala Harris have begun to spring up across Philadelphia. The ads are counterfeit, claiming the current vice president is the “official candidate of the Philadelphia Eagles.”
The ad depicts a drawing of a person’s profile, seemingly Vice President Harris, who is wearing an Eagles’ helmet while holding a football. Underneath the image is the name Kamala Harris, a statement calling Harris the “official candidate of the Philadelphia Eagles,” and a web link to Philadelphiaeagles.com/vote, the team’s official page for voter information but one that offers nonpartisan information to teach people how to register to vote and learn more about upcoming elections, not to support a specific candidate directly.
The #Eagles are aware of this Kamala Harris political ad. The team says it's counterfeit and is working with their advertising partner to have it removed. pic.twitter.com/iW3bO25Glz
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) September 2, 2024
The Eagles made an official statement on the counterfeit political ads via their “X” account: “We are aware counterfeit political ads are being circulated and are working with our advertising partner to have them removed.”
Ads have been reported at the intersection of 16th and Spring Garden streets and the intersection of 18th Street and John F. Kennedy Boulevard in Center City, according to NBC10.
According to Intersection Media, the company that owns the bus stop advertising where the ads were found, via NBC Philadelphia, the counterfeit ads were not paid for but were displayed illegally after the ad boxes were broken into.
“We are aware that several of our bus shelters located in Philadelphia have been vandalized and that the paid advertising copy in each of those shelters has been replaced with unauthorized copy,” Scott Goldsmith, the President and CEO of Intersection Media said in a statement to NBC.
Philadelphia’s Office of Transportation and Infrastructure also released a statement on the matter, saying: “These were not digital ads placed by the Harris campaign, the Philadelphia Eagles, SEPTA, The City of Philadelphia, or the advertising media agency, Intersection, that handles the transit shelter ad space.”
For some, actions speak louder than words. A self-proclaimed Eagles fan referred to by Steve Keeley of Fox29 as “Joe from South Philly” has a response of his own to the counterfeit political ads, posting copies of the Eagles’ aforementioned statement overtop the advertisements on city bus shelters.
Just Now: @eagles fan Joe from South Philly, taking matters into his own hands. He went to Staples to make copies of the Eagles’ statement regarding what the team calls the “counterfeit political ads” on city bus shelters. And pasted them over the unauthorized ad. 1/2 pic.twitter.com/TQG9azwNKU
— Steve Keeley (@KeeleyFox29) September 3, 2024
While a solution in the opinion of some, this act is also a form of vandalism. While these illegal ads should be responsibly dealt with, it’s important to allow the proper channels to do so. The initial ad, located at a bus stop at 34th and Walnut Streets in University City, has since been taken down. Other similar have been sighted and will also be removed.
No current information exists about who may have created or funded the counterfeit ads.
