Armstrong & Getty On Demand

Episode: "This Is An Ad For Potato Chips?!?"

Date: February 9, 2026
Host: iHeartPodcasts

Episode Overview

This episode dives into reactions to the Super Bowl broadcast, focusing chiefly on the halftime show featuring Bad Bunny, presented primarily in Spanish. Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty discuss cultural shifts in American entertainment, the inclusivity (or lack thereof) of the NFL’s presentation, commercial strategies—especially emotionally manipulative advertising—and a range of news topics from politics to crime. The tone is classic Armstrong & Getty: skeptical, irreverent, humorous, and sometimes curmudgeonly, with candid exploration of what mainstream culture considers "normal" in 2026.

Main Discussion: The Super Bowl Halftime Show Controversy

The Language Barrier & Cultural Messages

• Jack Armstrong expresses frustration about the NFL’s decision to have a prominent Spanish-language segment for the halftime show, feeling excluded:

  "What is the message that I'm being sent by the NFL by having a 40 minute show that's not in my language? What is the message being sent to me there?" (03:28)

• Joe Getty speculates that this is a deliberate move toward a multicultural, Hispanic America:

  "Step aside, white people. The Hispanic multicultural America is here and you're gonna take it." (03:42)

• Both hosts point out that only a small percentage of Americans speak only Spanish, and the choice of a Spanish-only segment without subtitles alienates most of the Super Bowl audience:

  "You crafted a halftime show for the by far most watched TV show in America and, and crafted it for 5% of your audience." (07:58 – Jack)

Artistic Critique of Bad Bunny's Performance

• Jack and Joe critique Bad Bunny’s style ("stomping around shouting in Spanish") and lack of singing or dancing compared to past artists:

  "He just stomps around shouting things at me in Spanish. Now, you cannot possibly criticize me for not finding that entertaining. Some guy stomping around shouting Spanish at me." (06:36 – Jack)

• The pair lampoon the enthusiastic mainstream media coverage:

  "I'm hearing some racism here, folks. Plenty of it. I mean the New York Times. Bad Bunny delivers joyful super bowl halftime show." (07:46 – Joe)

• The show pokes fun at criticism labeling them as old or uncosmopolitan for preferring English-language entertainment:

  “Forgive me for being so … non-cosmopolitan. That I want my entertainment in my language.” (18:36 – Jack)

Broader Cultural and Economic Calculations

• Joe analyzes the NFL's strategy to expand its audience and de-emphasize its traditional base:

  "That was Roger Goodell's completely mathem calculation that the old people, the old white people would get over it." (09:04)

• On whether similar decisions would be made elsewhere in the world, Jack notes:

  "Are there any other countries where they would take the most popular thing they have in their country and put it in a language that practically nobody understands? Other … No, it's. It's unthinkable." (09:54 – Jack and Joe)

Notable Moments & Quotes

• Trump’s Satirical (Fake and Real) Response:

  "This is your favorite president and this message is for Bad Bunny or as I call him, the nasty rabbit..." (12:07 – Jack, parodying Trump).
  "The super bowl halftime show is absolutely terrible. One of the worst ever.... it doesn't represent our standards of success, creativity, experience, blah, blah, blah. No, but nobody understands a word this guy is saying." (12:25 – Discussing Trump's actual social media post)

• On Commercials Manipulating Emotions:

  “Don’t tug at my heartstrings with the sort of thing that gets to me. And then it’s about flipping potato chips. Lays. That’s my favorite potato chip, too. But oh, he’s given his farm over to his daughter because they worked together... This is an ad for potato chips.” (16:59 – Jack)

Other Key Segments & News Topics

Media Coverage & Listener Feedback

• Reviewing media headlines, the hosts note polarized responses:
  • CNN: "Bad Bunny super bowl halftime show performance redefined what it means to be an American patriot." (17:59)
  • Fox: “Guthrie family vows to pay ransom as desperate search for Nancy Guthrie enters day nine.” (18:54)
• They invite and read listener texts and emails, many of which echo confusion or displeasure about the halftime show, noting its lack of cultural resonance for English-speaking, mainstream America.

The Guthrie Kidnapping

• Update on the Nancy Guthrie case: The hosts discuss the suspicious circumstances of the high-profile kidnapping, sharing skepticism as to whether it is a genuine ransom operation or something stranger.

  “This doesn't seem like any kidnapping I've ever heard of. I don't think they're...they kidnapped her for ransom. I don't think this is the kidnappers reaching out.” (29:30 – Jack)

• They discuss how public appeals to criminals may actually embolden or amuse predators rather than encourage mercy.

Other News Highlights

• The possibility of new Congressional debates over age limits for lawmakers (20:25)
• AI in the operating room leading to botched surgeries (20:07)
• Social media "vagueposting" (20:41)
• Ominous hints that political bombshells (like impeachment over cryptocurrency) might be on the horizon, yet are under-reported.

  “There’s another ginormous story … but nobody’s aware of it. But the minute the Democrats take the House of Representatives, I think Trump is going to be impeached like maybe that week over cryptocurrency and the UAE.” (37:17 – Joe)

Football Talk

• The hosts briefly praise the defensive prowess of Seattle (“Suffocating defense...,” 41:21 – Joe), while pitying the losing quarterback for enduring a “suffocating” performance.

  “He didn’t have a half a second to do anything. What was he supposed to do?” (41:34 – Jack)

Notable Quotes & Segments with Timestamps

• [03:28] Jack: “What is the message that I'm being sent by the NFL by having a 40-minute show that's not in my language?”
• [07:58] Jack: “You crafted a halftime show for the by far most watched TV show in America and crafted it for 5% of your audience.”
• [12:25] Jack recounts Trump’s response: “The Super Bowl halftime show is absolutely terrible. One of the worst ever. Exclamation point... nobody understands a word this guy is saying.”
• [16:59] Jack on emotionally manipulative ads: “Don’t tug at my heartstrings with the sort of thing that gets to me. And then it’s about flipping potato chips.”
• [18:36] Jack: “Forgive me for being so ... non-cosmopolitan. That I want my entertainment in my language.”
• [29:30] Jack on the Guthrie kidnapping: “This doesn’t seem like any kidnapping I’ve ever heard of. I don’t think they're... they kidnapped her for ransom. I don’t think this is the kidnappers reaching out.”
• [37:17] Joe on underreported political stories: “There’s another ginormous story...but nobody’s aware of it. But the minute the Democrats take the House ... Trump is going to be impeached ... over cryptocurrency and the UAE.”
• [41:21] Joe on football: “Suffocating defense, which makes for a boring football game, unfortunately.”

The Armstrong & Getty Takeaway

The episode centers on feelings of cultural displacement among traditional American viewers, using the Super Bowl halftime show as a lens to discuss broader social, cultural, and business trends. The hosts balance satirical humor, cultural anxiety, and straight commentary, questioning whether this drive for greater diversity and expansion is inclusive or simply alienating. Amidst the critiques of the NFL and commercialism, they explore what it means to be included—or excluded—in mass media and question who exactly "American" pop culture is for.

The tone is conversational, skeptical, and at times nostalgic, with the hosts openly grappling with the nature of change, representation, and how media choices may reflect or drive cultural division.

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