In our almost 45 years of doing business, Patagonia has never run a television advertisement. But with America’s public lands under unprecedented threat, we continue our legacy of advocating for the planet by bringing our voice to the airwaves.
In a nearly $700k media buy, Patagonia has purchased statewide television and radio time in Secretary Zinke’s home state of Montana reminding him of what he said, “our greatest treasures are public lands.” Additionally, we have purchased television and radio in Utah because Bears Ears and Grand Staircase Escalante National Monuments could be recommended to be rescinded, and we will be on the radio in Nevada where Gold Butte and Basin and Range National Monuments are also under threat. We intend to spread even more awareness by promoting the ad on social and digital media and it will be on the homepage of our website.
To run our first-ever television ad, Patagonia chose this issue and this time because it is that important. We don’t know of any other company currently running persuasion ads on television targeting the administration, and for us, this is an issue we have been advocating for since our founding.
In a statement, Patagonia President and CEO Rose Marcario said, “The national monuments under review are a critical part of our national heritage and these lands belong not just to us, but to future generations. We stand with the millions of Americans who spoke out in support of keeping protections in place for public lands. We hope Secretary Zinke will remember his roots and his words and protect these ‘national treasures.’"
This is not about politics or partisanship - it’s about standing up for places that belong to future generations. We want to raise awareness of history’s lesson that when public lands are turned over to states that can’t afford to maintain them, the result is the land is often auctioned off to private companies who irrevocably damage them and deny access to them for all of us. Whether you are a hunter or a hiker, an angler or a climber, we want you to join us in this fight to ensure access and protection for our public lands.
There is limited time before Secretary Zinke makes his August 24th decision on the remaining 21 national monuments and it is our hope that he will follow in the tradition of President Teddy Roosevelt and conserve our shared public lands for future generations. But no matter the outcome we won’t stop fighting to protect our public lands and we believe the voices of the people will be heard.
We would welcome your coverage of this news. You can view the ad here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCVNk0H9Erc. The script, as well as a list of some of the previous actions we have taken to protect public lands, are below.