40% of Wisconsinites Unable To Watch Packers-Bears Playoff Game On Broadcast Due To Amazon’s Exclusive Streaming Rights
Tom Tiffany Refuses To Sign Onto Bipartisan Legislation Allowing Packers Fans To Catch Regular Season Games While Taking Thousands In Donations From Amazon
On Friday, ahead of the Packers-Bears playoff game, Mandela Barnes dropped a video slamming the NFL and Amazon for putting one the Packers biggest game of the year behind a streaming paywall.
While plenty of Packers fans might now be wishing they hadn’t tuned in, millions of Wisconsinites shouldn’t be barred from watching the Packers for free to boost the profits of greedy corporations.
“As Governor, I’ll fight to make sure every game is broadcast to every Wisconsinite in all 72 counties. Enough is enough—these corporations are screwing us. Football should be for the fans, not just subscribers.” said Lt. Governor Mandela Barnes in the video
Lieutenant Governor Barnes’ fight for Packers fans is a stark contrast from Congressman Tom Tiffany, who has failed to sign onto bipartisan legislation to give all Wisconsinites access to games even if they’re located out of market—even though more more than 415,000 Wisconsinites can’t watch regular-season Packers matchups, and most counties deemed out-of-market by the NFL are in Tiffany’s own 7th Congressional District.
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@TheOtherMandela: Saturday, millions of Wisconsinites won’t be able to watch the Packers because of corporate greed. Football should be for the fans, not just subscribers.
@CoryBehnke (Founder of Cheesehead TV): Agree with this – all of Wisconsin should be able to get every Packer game Over The Air!!
@MarkBecker: MAN OF THE PEOPLE!!!!
@AwfulAnnouncing: Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate slams Amazon Packers playoff game http://dlvr.it/TQGYcr
In Print:
Awful Announcing: Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate slams Amazon Packers playoff game
[Matt Yoder, 1/10/2026]
There is still the matter of everyday fans having to fork over the dough for an Amazon Prime subscription who want to watch the historic rivalry game in the postseason. And while fans may be willing to sacrifice a regular season game here or there, the playoffs are a different story.
Sensing that potential frustration amongst the masses, it’s a great opportunity for a politician to step in, slam corporate greed for ruining America, and deliver a populist message that fans deserve to watch their favorite teams on free over-the-air television. That’s exactly what Wisconsin gubernatorial candidate and former Lieutenant Governor Mandela Barnes did with this social media video.
Urban Milwaukee: Packers TV Broadcasts At Issue in Governor’s Race
[Bruce Murphy, 1/12/2026]
If there is one issue that brings all Wisconsinites together, it’s support for the Green Bay Packers games and access for all to see the games on TV. But that might just become a wedge issue in the race for Wisconsin governor.
On the day before the Packers lost (ouch) to the Chicago Bears in the Saturday’s NFL playoff game, Democratic candidate Mandela Barnes blasted Amazon for “blocking Packers fans” from watching the game…
“Amazon and the NFL are ripping off Wisconsinites to grow their own pocketbooks,” Barnes declared in a campaign video “The Packers are the only team in the league not owned by billionaires, but we are still getting screwed by mega corporations. As Governor, I’ll fight to make sure every game is broadcast to every Wisconsinite in all 72 counties.”
The Go Pack Go Act, if passed, would require cable and satellite providers to ensure all Wisconsin subscribers have access to television stations from a Wisconsin media market.
“In Wisconsin, more than 415,000 people live in 13 counties that have been assigned to an out-of-state market, in either Minnesota or Michigan,” Wied noted in a statement, meaning they are “forced to endure Vikings or Lions broadcasts” when they play the Packers.
And since no counties in the state are part of the Bears market, that leaves 415,000 people with no local broadcast for Packers-Bears games.
And a large percentage of those people live in the district of Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany, who is now running for Wisconsin governor, including Ashland, Barron, Bayfield, Burnett, Douglas, Dunn, Iron, Pierce, Polk, Sawyer, St. Croix and Washburn counties.
While pledging he will fight to change this, Barnes charges that Tiffany “failed to sign onto” the bipartisan Go Pack Go Act “while he rakes in thousands of dollars in corporate donations from Amazon and other corporations.”
