A major Mississippi company is removing its advertisements from the 2024 Paris Olympics, following an unprecedented tableau reminiscent of “The Last Supper” during Friday’s opening ceremony.
C Spire, the state’s largest telecommunications company and the sixth largest wireless provider in the U.S., announced on social media that it would no longer be airing commercials during this year’s summer games.
“We were shocked by the mockery of the Last Supper during the opening ceremonies of the Paris Olympics. C Spire will be pulling our advertising from the Olympics,” the post reads.
We were shocked by the mockery of the Last Supper during the opening ceremonies of the Paris Olympics. C Spire will be pulling our advertising from the Olympics.
— C Spire (@CSpire) July 27, 2024
C Spire’s decision to pull ads from the Olympics comes after fans around the globe were surprised, with some disgusted, by a portion of the opening ceremony, which staged drag queens in what many speculated to be a rendition of Leonardo da Vinci’s mural painting of Jesus Christ breaking bread with the Twelve Disciples.
Thomas Jolly, the artistic director of the ceremony, has since defended the show amid backlash. He said during a Saturday press conference that his intention had not been “to be subversive, mock, or shock.”
Instead, Jolly vouched that he was trying to capture France’s diversity. France is widely considered one of the most LGBTQ+ friendly countries in the world.
“My will is to say we are an immense ‘we,'” Jolly said. “In France, we have the right to love each other, as we want, with whoever we want. In France, we have the right to believe and not to believe. In France, we have many rights.”
C Spire, one of the first companies to pull advertisements after the controversial ceremony, was celebrated by Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves for its decision to do so. C Spire is headquartered in Ridgeland, just outside of the state capital of Jackson.
“I am proud to see the private sector in Mississippi step up and put their foot down,” Reeves wrote on social media. “God will not be mocked. C Spire drew a common-sense, appropriate line.”
I am proud to see the private sector in Mississippi step up and put their foot down. God will not be mocked. C Spire drew a common-sense, appropriate line. https://t.co/R38yJye97I
— Governor Tate Reeves (@tatereeves) July 27, 2024
It’s unclear if other U.S. companies will follow suit in withdrawing ads from the Paris Olympics. The games are underway until Sunday, Aug. 11.
