Proposed Missouri Law Challenges NFL’s TV Sidelines Ban; NFL Cracks Down On

Is nothing sacred? Football and television are hot topics that can cross party lines and empty out church basements, at least in the "Show Me" state of Missouri and in the Bible Belt states Indiana and Ohio.

In Missouri, two state senators – one a Republican, the other a Democrat – introduced legislation challenging a National Football League policy that prohibits local affiliate television stations from covering game action on the sidelines. And in Indiana and Ohio, threats of legal action from the NFL cancelled church Super Bowl parties.

Legislation introduced on Tuesday by Senator Matt Bartle (R-Dist. 8) and Senator Victor Callahan (D-Dist. 11) would force the NFL to allow local affiliate cameras on the sidelines for games of the Kansas City Chiefs and St. Louis Rams, who both play in stadiums partially supported by public money, and would allow any media denied reasonable sideline access to sue the teams for damages.