Katie Couric's Notebook: Super Bowl Ads

Three million bucks for 30 seconds. That sounds steep, even for a spot in TV's most-watched event, the Super Bowl. Still, advertisers are buying. Just not necessarily the usual suspects.

That old Chevy song "Like a Rock" became almost Pavlovian. From the first bars you knew it was game time. Well, you won't see that ad, or any ad for an American car company. Bloomberg reports that for the first time in a decade, none of the Big Three bought one.

You will see an ad for Denny's, and a series of one-second commercials for Miller High Life. Both brands will be emphasizing value and savings - two qualities that are sure to be eye-catching in a recession.

Creativity doesn't decline with the Dow, so we'll likely still get a laugh or two from a "whassup!" or an almost-not-safe-for-work Go Daddy ad.

But for now, the longtime MVP's of sports advertising - the U.S. Automakers -will spend the game benched on the sidelines.