Athletes In Advertising Essay

Submitted By mtpackar
Words: 1991
Pages: 8
Open Document
Athletes in Advertising A certain professional basketball player always drank Coca-Cola and ate McDonald’s, and became known as a basketball icon. Although it sounds completely absurd when put in text, a claim like this seems far more probable when consumers see Michael Jordan chomping down on a Big Mac, or chugging a Coke on a TV commercial. For decades, a variety of big name companies have used professional athletes as tools for advertisements, and the TV viewers bought the sales pitch. Some companies use athletes to promote products with positive effects, as well as products that relate to the specific sport the athlete plays. Yet, other companies have used athletes to promote potentially unhealthy or dangerous products, and these athletes have shown little concern toward the movement they are advertising. With this in mind, athletes “impact and influence a lot of people, whether the athlete wants to or not” (Smith). What many athletes do not consider is how their image affects average people, especially children. We consumers love to idolize these athletes, and companies can easily manipulate a child’s mind to want their product if a famous athlete claims to use it. For the sake of the youth, athletes need to realize their responsibilities as role models, and promote only positive messages in their advertisements.
Professional athletes have the decision to maintain a positive or a negative image in the eye of the public. Some athletes realize this, and take the responsibility to make good decisions, thus enhancing a fan base full of children who look up to them. Roberto Clemente, a baseball Hall of Fame outfielder, always felt that “children were a very significant part of our society and should be cared for and influenced in positive ways” (Smith). The only problem today is how “athletes make so much money and have so much exposure” (Smith). With money comes great power and responsibility, and some professional athletes have thrown away their careers with scandals, bankruptcy, and crime. That is why every athlete needs to “take care of themselves and their images outside of the lines of the game” (Smith). The popular athletes spend a lot of time on camera, whether playing their sport or featuring in a commercial. However, the advertisements play a key role in what the athlete represents, and what the athlete essentially wants the viewers to go purchase. One of the main advertisements an athlete will endorse is food, which has potential to damage the athlete’s reputation.
Food commercials are essential to the professional athlete’s image, because they portray what they put into their bodies to maintain the fittest, healthiest, and most appropriate bodies they can provide for their sport. Yet, it seems a bit strange when watching commercials featuring athletes gulping some Coca-Cola, or enjoying some sodium and calorie-packed meal from McDonald’s. Since the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta, McDonald’s has owned the title of the “official restaurant of the Olympic Games” (Longman). This statement has been featured in TV, radio and billboard ads, and may give the impression that all Olympic athletes eat McDonald’s. Any adult with adequate knowledge of food health knows this impression is not true, but children might believe it is. When the Olympics roll around every two years, whether it is the winter or summer games, adults and children from around the world tune-in to watch their “favorite athlete competing” (Connelly). Therefore, all these adults and children get numerous Olympic-themed endorsements thrown at them, some of which feature their favorite athlete. “In Atlanta, the golden arches figure” was “displayed almost as prominently as the Olympic rings” (Longman). Many large-scale companies use this technique of mass advertising as a way to brainwash consumers into remembering that brand’s name every time they need to buy something. Millions of Americans fell for the technique, and tuned in to watch their favorite athletes
Show More

Related Documents: Athletes In Advertising Essay

Essay 3 Final

learning to read and write in his work learning to read, but he never gave up on what he truly wanted. Douglass never gave up because he was confident in himself that he would never give up on his life goal even though he was a slave. In Douglass’s essay he envy’s those slaves who are unable to read for they are unable to understand what they can achieve while; he knows the power of reading and writing. This has tormented him because he knows what is happening to every slave out there and how he is…

Words 2539 - Pages 11

Essay 3 Final Draft

Jennifer Helms Professor Colgrove ENG 121 15 April, 2014 A Better America Making America a better place to live is the main point in President Barack Obama’s State of the Union Address. Obama makes his intent very clear throughout the address. His audience being the citizens of America, “Tonight, the chamber speaks with one voice to the people we represent: it is you, our citizens, who make the state of our union strong.” Reaching out to his audience in a sincere manner is favorable to him.…

Words 1268 - Pages 6

Essay 3 Final Draft

No Name No Teacher ENC 1101 13 November 2014 Social Media: The Good and The Bad When visiting a restaurant, how many couples or groups of people dining together are simultaneously looking down at their cell phones, instead of engaging in a real-life conversation? People of all ages and backgrounds have entangled themselves to the ever-growing technological world around us. It is clearly visible that social media has affected today's society and how people communicate with one another. We must ask…

Words 576 - Pages 3

WRT 102 Essay 3 FINAL

understand is that pictures you post can be seen by multiple people more then just friends. Not only can friends view the picture but they can also be easily saved and forwarded to others. Overall the digital natives need to learn from this. Barnett !3 When posting pictures think about is this really how I want to be seen as? Is this really me? Will I attract the wrong attraction? Have you ever posted racy pictures of yourself, displayed your guns in a blog, made a drug reference on Facebook, bashed…

Words 1088 - Pages 5

Classical Argument Essay 3 Final

Stereotyping and Profiling – The Negative Effect on Society Glenn A Smith ENG102 Sullivan University Composition 102 Abstract This essay shows the negative effects society encounters from stereotyping and profiling and some solutions to how, we as a nation, can overcome this plague. Stereotyping is the act of making an assumption or generalization of a particular person or group of persons based on misconceptions usually extending to how they might act or what they represent or just…

Words 3056 - Pages 13

10 3 Final Project Essay

Implementation of a Computer Network Security for a Production / Manufacturing Industry. Abstract This implementation of Computer network security for a manufacturing company is challenge in this growing competitive market. Enterprises employ hundreds of employees working in various departments at various locations through an established intranet for the organization. Many industries are in lack of Information security system which affects the business of the organization in…

Words 2507 - Pages 11

Essay about Humanities Final Week 3

Title Assessing the Validity of Varying Points of View Assessment A, Part 1: Assessing the Validity of Statements in a Discussion Online education is not as effective as a traditional classroom ☑ Reasonable ☐ Unreasonable Getting a degree online gives you much more flexibility in terms of when you take classes ☑ Reasonable ☐ Unreasonable You can’t learn as much online as in a normal classroom ☐ Reasonable ☑ Unreasonable You get better personalization and interaction online…

Words 497 - Pages 2

AP Bio Final Project term 3 Essay

Brad Zimmerman + Emily Mickelson Effects on comprehension when presented with different stimuli Question: Is comprehension (of an article) affected by the different stimuli around a person? Hypothesis: The more types of stimuli presented to someone, the less that individual will be able to remember about a topic presented to them. This is significant because it can affect the ability of organisms to thrive under varying conditions of noise and light. Outline: A group of students (G…

Words 336 - Pages 2

Essay about Article summary week 3 final

Cardiovascular Diseases Katrina Gilliard HCS/245 August 7, 2014 Todd Nickelsberg “Scientists have found that eating almonds in your diet can reduce the risk of heart disease by keeping blood vessels healthy” (Griffiths, 2014, para. 1). Helen Griffiths a professor in biomedical sciences and an Executive Dean of the School of Life and Health Sciences at Aston University in Birmingham, UK, conducted the study. Griffiths and colleagues studied and tested the effects of short-term almond…

Words 349 - Pages 2

Acc 111 Final Exam - All 3 Parts Essay

ACC 111 Final Exam - All 3 Parts IF You Want To Purchase A+ Work Then Click The Link Below , Instant Download http://acehomework.com/ACC-111-Final-Exam-All-3-Parts-11111122332.htm?categoryId=-1 If You Face Any Problem E- Mail Us At JohnMate1122@gmail.com Final exam paart 1 • Question 1 3 out of 3 points A company was recently formed with $ 50,000 cash contributed to the company by stock-holders. The company then borrowed $ 20,000 from a bank and bought…

Words 1426 - Pages 6