"Legalise" message is sneaking into the mainstream.

Willie Nelson wants to legalise "comfort". The artist and marijuana icon made the not-so-subtle case for a policy change in a Skechers commercial that aired during the Super Bowl last Sunday.

Skechers have frequently aired commercials at football events, but this one celebrates a momentous marijuana moment. The commercial sidesteps explicit mention of cannabis but at the same time firmly implies that the plant is the subject. Nelson appears labelled an "activist and comfort expert", wearing a shirt with a "LEGALIZE" slogan. He tongue-in-cheek states that he's spent years endorsing the legalisation of "the one thing that can bring comfort to millions: Skechers."

"You see, Skechers should be legal," says Nelson. This is before he is cut off mid-sentence by a director who replies, "I don't think Skechers are illegal anywhere."
"But to feel so good, I just assumed The Man-made them illegal,"  Viewers are left to make the connection to cannabis for themselves.

"No," the director says.
"Not even a little illegal—like you can wear them to a concert but not to a kids' soccer game?" Nelson asks.
"You can wear Skechers anywhere," the director says.
"Well, pass the Skechers," Nelson says.
The humourous ad finishes with the on-screen slogan: "Skechers, legalised comfort."

The Super Bowl is one of the consistently most-watched TV events. This years TV show drew an audience of 101 million. While cannabis use for adults is being increasingly normalised in the USA, to have an Ad like this during the Super Bowl is a significant step forward. Interestingly, this year's show also featured another big-time weed advocate in Snoop Dogg. Snoop performed at the revered halftime show alongside Dr Dre, 50 Cent, Eminem and Mary J Blige. He was also pictured sparking up not long before going on stage in photos shown on media outlets around the world!

On his contribution to the worlds most-watched tv show, Nelson said
"I can't resist making an appearance during the Super Bowl,"  

The President of the athletic shoe company Michael Greenberg added that Nelson "is an American icon whose appeal knows no boundaries and a perfect fit for our new global campaign that begins at the Super Bowl."

 "We know featuring Willie's genuine personality and well-known passions in a pair of commercials will make an impression for the millions watching the game". 

The announcement that this ad would be aired came only days after "Weedmaps", the cannabis technology company, released their satirical ad featuring a man dressed as broccoli. Hilariously he describes how he is going through an identity crisis because people have come to associate the vegetable emoji with cannabis.

This ad aims to draw attention to the censorship that cannabis businesses are still facing on social media and mainstream advertising. Censorship where people are forced to use emojis such as broccoli and maple leaves as a substitute for cannabis,

The timing of the weed maps ad was intentional and pegged to the Super Bowl. It was a response when the CBS network rejected a cannabis-related ad aimed for the Super Bowl in 2019. Weedmaps said it reached out to CBS about running their ad this year. According to a press release," the network did decline the request".

Cannabis brands and influencers have long experienced problems with having their accounts are shut down on Instagram, Facebook and other social media platforms. This seems to be the case even when they are not directly selling or promoting the sale of cannabis.

Advocates have also found it hypocritical that Twitter partnered with a federal drug agency to promote substance misuse treatment resources last year whenever users search for "marijuana" or other substance-related keywords. However, no such health warning appears with results for alcohol-connected terms.