* Experts says Komen brand weakened by decision
* Nonprofits drawn into political debate on abortion (Recasts, adds details throughout)
By Michelle Nichols
NEW YORK, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Major sponsors of the two top U.S. women's health advocacy groups affirmed their support on Thursday for the organizations even as the rift between their supporters deepened.
Breast cancer charity Susan G. Komen for the Cure has cut funding to Planned Parenthood Federation of America, a provider of birth control and abortion services, sparking an outcry from abortion rights supporters who accuse the group of bowing to political pressure.
As Komen struggled to defuse the crisis on Thursday, donors sought to validate the mission of each group in their work with patients.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg pledged $250,000 of his own money to Planned Parenthood, to fill a gap left by the loss of $700,000 annually from Komen that was used to give poor women access to breast examinations and mammograms.
"Politics have no place in health care," said Bloomberg. "Breast cancer screening saves lives and hundreds of thousands of women rely on Planned Parenthood for access to care."
Several of Komen's corporate sponsors -- American Airlines , Ford Motor Company and Yoplait - said they would stand by the charity for its record of supporting breast cancer patients.
"We remain committed in our fight to end breast cancer, which affects one in eight women," American Airlines said.
Ford spokeswoman Marisa Bradley said that the company understood the concern being expressed, but would continue to sponsor Komen as it had done for the past 18 years.
"Yoplait has a long history of supporting women in the fight against breast cancer. We will continue to partner with organizations that will have the greatest impact in that fight," Yoplait said in a statement.
WEAKENING BRAND, DONOR SPLIT
Kivi Leroux Miller, an expert in nonprofit marketing and communications, said that intentionally or not, Komen had complicated the group's message by cutting ties to Planned Parenthood.
"The big problem for Komen is they went from very simple, clear messaging - wear the pink ribbon, run the race, cure breast cancer," she said, referring to the group's signature advocacy campaign. "What they have done ... is made that messaging incredibly muddy and political for people."
Miller said the decision followed other controversial moves by Komen such as a fundraising campaign with fried chicken chain KFC that was questioned by health experts, and legal action against smaller charities using "for the cure" in their names.
"They have basically been able to weather that. I'm not sure they are going to be able to weather this one, it might be the last straw. We will have to wait and see," she said.
Doug White, of Columbia University's fundraising management program, said donors might now be split between Planned Parenthood and Komen.
"If there are common donors, there will probably be fewer of them in the future," he said.
"What this does is say, 'OK, if you are a conservative go with Komen, if you are a liberal go with Planned Parenthood,' and that's not the way the nonprofit world should be," he said. (Editing by Michele Gershberg and Xavier Briand)
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