If you blinked, you might have missed it. If you saw it, you could have been eligible for a three night stay at one of 13 Trump Hotel locations.
This was according to an advertisement that ran on the University of New Mexico Athletics Department’s Facebook page on Friday night, but has since been pulled down.
The caption above the ad read, “Calling all Lobo’s! We want to send you on a luxury getaway. One lucky winner will choose from the eleven amazing Trump Hotel properties. Enter here to win a trip of unparalleled service and extraordinary experiences!”
In a written statement, UNM said that their media partner, Learfield Sports Properties who ran the advertisement, works with lots of different advertisers who provide branded content. They added that “this particular ad was approved for social media distribution last year. Due to concerns about the broken link, as well as fan responses, we decided to remove the ad.”
Learfield is a marketing service that connects universities with brands that want to advertise through college sports, according to their website. For UNM, Learfied handles the “rights relationship...event sponsorships and promotion, corporate hospitality, radio and television, digital engagement and visibility.” They also manage the GoLobos website.
According to an analysis of the Athletics Department conducted by the UNM Athletics Budget Task Force, the UNM-Learfield contract was valued at $4,456,500.
The Associated Students of the University of New Mexico were among those upset with the advertisement.
In a written statement, ASUNM Director of Communications Brendon Gray said they were concerned about the advertisement adding “(we) hope this incident will be an opportunity for administrators and leaders across campus to reflect on the tumultuous climate students navigate.”
According to UNM spokesperson Cinnamon Blair, the ad also ran on other Learfield-managed websites, including Georgia Southern and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.
The photo featured in the advertisement was of the Trump Turnberry Hotel in Scotland. This is the same hotel and golf course that former Athletics Department Director Paul Krebs took anonymous donors and others on a golf trip to. The outing came under fire when the Albuquerque Journal and KRQE uncover the trip was unauthorized and cost roughly $300,000.
It’s unclear if anyone won the contest that the advertisement promoted.
Kyle Land contributed reporting to this article.
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Justin Garcia is a freelance reporter for the Daily Lobo. He primarily covers student government. He can be contacted at news@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @Just516garc.
