TV stations turn away ads for All Star Mechanical’s Larry Kirchhoff

WLNS, Fox 47 News won’t comment on not running satirical opinion commercials

TUESDAY, Aug. 19 — Larry Kirchhoff likes to make his views known.

Kirchhoff owns the local HVAC service company All Star Mechanical. In 2022, he bought a full-page ad in City Pulse in which he tied his business to his opinion on the U.S. Supreme Court ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, which had protected a woman’s right to an abortion.

“Gun fetishes are being prioritized, women are no longer in control of their own bodies, the Earth is heating … . Honestly, at this point, who gives a SH*T about HVAC. But if you’re hot, give us a call.”

That ad went viral, garnering over 123,000 likes and 17,000 retweets on Twitter, now known as X. Since then, he has placed more than 100 such “Sponsored Content” ads in City Pulse, sharing his views, often in a personal way. His company logo is usually the only reference to his business.

Kirchhoff doesn’t limit his brand of marketing to City Pulse. He also runs ads on television — or did until recently.

Two local stations, WLNS and Fox News 47, recently rebuffed two commercials.

“I have been advertising with WLNS and Fox 47,” Kirchhoff texted. “I sent both my sales reps the scripts, and they both approved them.”

Based on that, Kirchhoff said he spent $13,500 to produce the 30-second spots.

One of them mocked the 13 men who were arrested and charged with plotting to kidnap Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer in 2020. The other depicts flag-wavers shouting, “He made America great again” as they prepare to burn a cross on the lawn of an African American family’s home.

Kirchhoff said that while his previous ads on both stations “poked the bear,” these were “more bold.”

He cited text messages from his sales representatives in which, he said, they approved the scripts.

“These might be over the top.” Susan Angel from WLNS wrote him, “I will air them if you want,” but she counseled him to “take the high road.”

WLNS never aired them. Fox pulled them after a day. 

Angel declined to comment and said she didn’t know who at WLNS would.

Garty Baxter, Fox 47’s longtime station manager, declined to comment as well.

Kirchhoff shared an email he received from a Grand Ledge viewer talking about the commercial depicting the mob on the African American family’s lawn.

“I was outraged,” it said. “I found it to be insensitive and very offensive. I couldn’t believe any TV station would agree to air it.”

But then the email took a surprising turn.

The writer said that the next day, she went to All Star Mechanical’s website for contact information “so I could give you a piece of my mind.

“That’s where I found your article about Juneteenth and our current state of affairs,” she wrote. “Thanks for the education! Your ad is an attention-grabber, for sure. It got me to the real message. You’re a smart man whose heart is in the right place. Keep up the good work!”

Said Kirchhoff, “I’m thankful she was of a like mind, and it gives me a little hope for humanity. It was heart-warming.”

As for his reaction to what the stations did, he said, “It feels like suppression of free speech. And it is right out of the fascist playbook. Somebody higher up at the stations is scared.”

He added, “It’s fascinating Susan Angel specifically mentioned it was politically charged when clearly they run some extremely questionable ads during the political campaigns. I’ve seen political ads that lie through their teeth that shouldn’t be on the airwaves.”

Kirchhoff was uncertain about his next step, both on the free-speech front and regarding the $13,500 he spent after he thought the stations had greenlit his scripts.

“Honestly, I am pretty naive when it comes to legal matters,” he said. “My initial thought is that they have more money to fight me than I do them. I do wonder, though, if this is a free speech issue, and would any lawyers consider it something worth pursuing? I don’t know.”

TV stations have a legal obligation to run ads from candidates, but not opinion ads in general, including satirical ones.

“I’m going to talk with them later this week,” he said.  “I’m not exactly sure what I want to do at this point.”