[mas-dkt-sive]

Yes, but these are companies who received TARP funds.

The TARP funds are my money too, and I want these companies to be as successful as they can be in order to pay me back my money with interest! That means getting customers interested in using their products or services and that means blatant self promotion..... exactly the same if I had taken my private funds and invested in the same company, I would expect them to use whatever methods they needed to insure profitability, including sponsoring public events!