The ads are on hiatus, pending Rachel Maddow’s return to hosting the show. FFRF will update this site when we confirm the dates our ads will air.
Ron Reagan’s iconic commercial on behalf of the Freedom From Religion Foundation will begin appearing on MSNBC’s “Rachel Maddow Show” for the next two weeks starting today.
The ad, in which Reagan irreverently describes himself as “an unabashed atheist . . . not afraid of burning in hell,” has just finished its debut run on CBS’ “60 Minutes,” with the last spot airing yesterday. The commercial will run this week on the live broadcast of Rachel Maddow’s commentary and interview show, which starts at 9 p.m. Eastern Monday through Thursday, and will also appear during the midnight reairing. The ads will continue next week on the live show and will be rebroadcast from Monday, Feb. 14, through Thursday, Feb. 17.
In the 30-second commercial, Reagan, who is the outspoken son of President Ronald and Nancy Reagan, says:
Hi, I’m Ron Reagan, an unabashed atheist, and I’m alarmed, as you may be, by the intrusion of religion into our secular government. That’s why I’m asking you to join the Freedom From Religion Foundation, the nation’s largest and most effective association of atheists and agnostics, working to keep state and church separate, just like our Founders intended. Please join the Freedom From Religion Foundation. Ron Reagan, lifelong atheist, not afraid of burning in hell.
FFRF’s “Freethought Matters” TV show played a 30-minute interview with Reagan on Sunday, Feb. 6. He has received FFRF’s Emperor Has No Clothes Award for his lifelong identification as an atheist and his advocacy of the separation between religion and government.
“We’re so grateful to Ron and to the hundreds and hundreds of new members who have joined this year already after seeing the commercial on ‘60 Minutes,’” says Annie Laurie Gaylor, FFRF co-president. “At FFRF, we truly believe our motto, ‘Freedom depends on freethinkers.’ Our continued growth will enhance FFRF’s vital efforts to ensure that reason and our secular Constitution will prevail.”
The Freedom From Religion Foundation is a national nonprofit organization with more than 36,000 members across the country. FFRF protects the constitutional separation between state and church and educates about nontheism. FFRF advertising is made possible by kind contributions from members. Donations to FFRF are deductible for income-tax purposes.
