# GM is "the sole corporate sponsor" of Ken Burns? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [September 29, 2007, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gm-is-the-sole-corporate-sponsor-of-ken-burns/420908 "2007-09-29T07:01:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 4\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ambushed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@ambushed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ambushed)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 7:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gm-is-the-sole-corporate-sponsor-of-ken-burns/420908/1 "2007-09-29T07:01:33Z")
At the start of each episode of Ken Burns’ _The War_, we hear a voice-over claiming that “GM is the sole corporate sponsor of the films of Ken Burns”. We hear this immediately prior to a string of _other_ corporate sponsors. What gives? ---
**Author:** ![ambushed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3bc359/32.png) [@ambushed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ambushed)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 7:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gm-is-the-sole-corporate-sponsor-of-ken-burns/420908/2 "2007-09-29T07:20:18Z")
I may have just answered my own question. Sorry for the hamster-wastage if so. Upon further checking, it turns out that the voice-over says GM “has been” the sole corporate sponsor “for over ten years”. While the impression given is that GM _remains_ the “sole corporate sponsor”, that somewhat disingenuous language probably gives enough wiggle room to avoid any challenge… ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gm-is-the-sole-corporate-sponsor-of-ken-burns/420908/3 "2007-09-29T14:12:55Z")
The other question to consider is: are the other corporations sponsoring Ken Burns, or his specific project? The statement you’ve quote implies to me that GM is convinced that Ken Burns has a gold touch, and so have given him complete discretion on his projects - or at least a very, very light amount of control/approval. Whereas, the other sponsors may well be sponsoring only his WWII, and will wait to see what he comes up with next without making any promises. ---
**Author:** ![yabob](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yabob/32/2821_2.png) [@yabob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yabob)\ **Post date:** [September 29, 2007, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/gm-is-the-sole-corporate-sponsor-of-ken-burns/420908/4 "2007-09-29T14:47:05Z")
[QUOTE=ambushed] I may have just answered my own question. Sorry for the hamster-wastage if so. Upon further checking, it turns out that the voice-over says GM “has been” the sole corporate sponsor “for over ten years”. While the impression given is that GM _remains_ the “sole corporate sponsor”, that somewhat disingenuous language probably gives enough wiggle room to avoid any challenge… [/QUOTE] That does appear to be the case: > [@](#): > > Notice something different about your current Bank of America statement? “Bank of America is a proud sponsor of THE WAR, a Ken Burns film,” it says, in even bigger print than your balances. > > … > > “The War” has gotten a buildup bigger than all of them put together. PBS and the series’s corporate sponsors - General Motors and Anheuser-Busch, as well as Bank of America - have spent an estimated $10 million publicizing the documentary. From [http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/articles/2007/09/16/fighting\_the\_good\_fight/](http://www.boston.com/ae/movies/articles/2007/09/16/fighting_the_good_fight/) Indeed, my BofA statement has just such a blurb on it, upon inspection, although it seems to be in the same font as the balances, and in a little box labeled “Bank of America News” for convenient skipping over as undoubted flackage. It turns out that GM made an agreement in 1999 to underwrite 35% of all of Mr. Burns’ future movies for the next 10 years. They had been the “sole corporate sponsor” on his earlier projects, but had made that decision on a movie by movie basis.