The Philadelphia Eagles recently found themselves in an unexpected political spotlight due to unauthorized posters appearing around the city. These posters, which falsely claimed the NFL team had endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris for president, prompted a swift response from the Eagles organization.
On Monday, the Eagles took to social media to address the situation. “We are aware counterfeit political ads are being circulated and are working with our advertising partner to have them removed,” the team stated on their official X account. This post quickly gained traction, amassing nearly 12 million views at the time of this writing.
We are aware counterfeit political ads are being circulated and are working with our advertising partner to have them removed.
— Philadelphia Eagles (@Eagles) September 2, 2024
The fake advertisements depicted Vice President Harris in Eagles gear, complete with a helmet and jersey, holding a football. The text boldly proclaimed, “Kamala. The official candidate of the Philadelphia Eagles.” These posters were spotted at several bus shelters across Philadelphia, including locations on Spring Garden Street, JFK Boulevard, and near the University of Pennsylvania campus.
Update: The Eagles confirm they are fake. https://t.co/UgkXxuJiwp https://t.co/qNBRirY9xY
— Eagles Nation (@PHLEaglesNation) September 2, 2024
Adding to the confusion, the posters included a URL that appeared to be an official Eagles web address for voting information. However, upon investigation, the site contained outdated details about primary elections.
Local transportation authorities were caught off-guard by the appearance of these posters. A spokesperson for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) clarified that the bus shelters where the ads appeared are actually city property, not under SEPTA’s control.
2/2 @SEPTA spokesman says “The bus shelters are owned by the city. So far, we have not heard anything about ads like this appearing on SEPTA property.” @Eagles say they’re “working with our advertising partner to have them removed.” Blank space now where one of the ads had been. pic.twitter.com/ixRWm4uEUS
— Steve Keeley (@KeeleyFox29) September 2, 2024
The city made the following statement to CBS News:
“A number of illegally placed posters of Kamala Harris and the Philadelphia Eagles were placed in bus shelters in Philadelphia. These were not digital ads placed by the Harris campaign, the Philadelphia EAGLES, SEPTA, The City of Philadelphia or the media agency, Intersection, that handles the transit ad space. This was not a digital breach; whomever is responsible for the illegally placed posters, broke into the securely covered shelter ad space and somehow put the posters in the space. Intersection has advised the City’s Office of Transportation and Infrastructure Systems (OTIS) that they plan to conduct a full inventory tomorrow of all bus shelters, and remove any illegally posters. The City has a process to review all bus shelter ads but this, again, was not a digital ad.”
The incident has raised questions about how these unauthorized ads made their way into enclosed cases at bus stops, typically reserved for official advertisements. This placement has led to speculation about the posters’ origins and how they managed to be displayed in such official-looking locations.
Some social media users have drawn comparisons between these posters and the work of street artist Winston Tseng. Tseng is known for creating politically charged artwork that often appears in public spaces.
Previously, he designed posters featuring both President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump, using well-known brand imagery to make political statements. However, as of now, there’s no confirmed link between Tseng and the Kamala Harris posters.
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This incident highlights the increasing challenges organizations face in managing their public image in a time where misinformation can spread rapidly through both physical and digital channels.