Nike sides with Kaepernick

[sportage]

I support Kaepernick but choosing football as the means of protest is a losing battle.
Really? American football?
More American than apple pie?
Like with the oscars back years ago when Oscar winners choose to vent during their acceptance speech. Or send someone up to vent for them. That didn't go too well.
Kaepernick has a legit gripe and protest, but during football?
I see the problem.
It just gives people like Trump reason to attack Kaepernick, and his base reason to attack liberals. Naturally his base and Fox News link Kaepernick with liberals.
I don't know the answer for Kaepernick. His attempts will be misguided at least.
All Donald Trump needs to do, and he will, is have his republican friends in congress, then this extremist US Supreme Court Trump now controls to enact law(s) banning such protests, and dishing out severe punishment for such protests.
Especially when the protest involves football, apple pie, the flag, and attacking Donald Trump.
One dare not question or doubt der fuhrer Donald Trump or what der fuhrer holds dear.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

I support Kaepernick but choosing football as the means of protest is a losing battle.
Really? American football?
More American than apple pie?
Like with the oscars back years ago when Oscar winners choose to vent during their acceptance speech. Or send someone up to vent for them. That didn't go too well.
Kaepernick has a legit gripe and protest, but during football?
I see the problem.
It just gives people like Trump reason to attack Kaepernick, and his base reason to attack liberals. Naturally his base and Fox News link Kaepernick with liberals.
I don't know the answer for Kaepernick. His attempts will be misguided at least.
All Donald Trump needs to do, and he will, is have his republican friends in congress, then this extremist US Supreme Court Trump now controls to enact law(s) banning such protests, and dishing out severe punishment for such protests.
Especially when the protest involves football, apple pie, the flag, and attacking Donald Trump.
One dare not question or doubt der fuhrer Donald Trump or what der fuhrer holds dear.

I'll just never get over the fact that that Kaepernick...

#1 - Biggest point by far - He had ZERO problems with the NFL, black people, protesting, Americuh, etc... UNTIL he was the backup. When he was a starter? No problems! Everything is grand! Get put on the bench? Time to cry like a little bitch for attention. Case closed - this is attention whoring 101 - he has no real basis, innovation, or drive to do anything or solve any problems other than to gain attention to himself.

#2 - Was adopted by rich white parents. He wouldn't know what oppression was if it smacked in the back of the head. Nothing more hilarious than someone who knows nothing about oppression... speaking as if he knows what oppression is. The kid had his life handed to him on a silver platter.

 

[s0me0nesmind1]

Why do you hate capitalism?

You missed his point...

His point being - Nike doesn't give a shit about Kaepernick, black people, equality, etc... They care what their marketing team (believes) will net them with a larger sum of bills in their pockets. That's it.

 

[ch33zw1z]

You missed his point...

His point being - Nike doesn't give a shit about Kaepernick, black people, equality, etc... They care what their marketing team (believes) will net them with a larger sum of bills in their pockets. That's it.

Of course, I didn't miss it at all, he's just stating the obvious, and this is how corporations operate in a capital driven, global economy. Thanks for the pro-tip though.

FWIW - I buy shoes based on fit, other clothing retailers are easily boycotted, but finding a comfortable pair of shoes is tough sometimes. I dont buy Nike, too narrow.

 

[UglyCasanova]

I'll just never get over the fact that that Kaepernick...

#1 - Biggest point by far - He had ZERO problems with the NFL, black people, protesting, Americuh, etc... UNTIL he was the backup. When he was a starter? No problems! Everything is grand! Get put on the bench? Time to cry like a little bitch for attention. Case closed - this is attention whoring 101 - he has no real basis, innovation, or drive to do anything or solve any problems other than to gain attention to himself.

#2 - Was adopted by rich white parents. He wouldn't know what oppression was if it smacked in the back of the head. Nothing more hilarious than someone who knows nothing about oppression... speaking as if he knows what oppression is. The kid had his life handed to him on a silver platter.

I agree with both those points but at the end of the day even very well to do people can protest for whatever they want and I can’t fault someone for taking up for those less fortunate. I do think that he’s rode this ride for the publicity moreso than anything else but I have no idea what the guy truly thinks/feels (and Nike is capitalizing on it and nothing else, it’s about dollars and only that). People should have the right to protest and companies also should have the right to protect their brand. He’s using the NFL's resources to broadcast his protest and they should have every right to shut it down. I don’t mind them protesting though and I see it as a good thing really of people engaging in things they feel passionate about. NFL is caught between a rock and a hard place and want it to just go away.

 

[wahdangun]

swell for you, but it has absolutely no relevance to the supply line and products that we are able to purchase in the US. But hey, you could be thanking us because we purchase a lot of "made in Indonesia" USA products as well!

LOL it's almost then like your "I always buy local" comment has ZERO bearing on the discussion at hand.

It's just ironic that you all cheering a company that oppressing their worker just because their marketing is aligned with you.

 

[child of wonder]

Wait, you like police murdering unarmed people?

Do you still beat your wife?

 

[sactoking]

I'll just never get over the fact that that Kaepernick...

#1 - Biggest point by far - He had ZERO problems with the NFL, black people, protesting, Americuh, etc... UNTIL he was the backup. When he was a starter? No problems! Everything is grand! Get put on the bench? Time to cry like a little bitch for attention. Case closed - this is attention whoring 101 - he has no real basis, innovation, or drive to do anything or solve any problems other than to gain attention to himself.

#2 - Was adopted by rich white parents. He wouldn't know what oppression was if it smacked in the back of the head. Nothing more hilarious than someone who knows nothing about oppression... speaking as if he knows what oppression is. The kid had his life handed to him on a silver platter.

This is a false narrative. As to #1, you're forgetting or omitting several important facts. You state that Kaepernick only started caring after he became a backup. Kaepernick was placed on season-ending IR on or around November 21, 2015. https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...kaepernick-goes-on-season-ending-ir/76174080/

He first sat for the anthem on August 14, 2016.https://www.sbnation.com/2016/9/11/...-anthem-protest-seahawks-brandon-marshall-nfl

This was the first time he suited up for a game since being placed on IR the prior year. Between 11/21/15 and 8/14/16 Alton Sterling was shot and killed, Philando Castile was shot and killed and the Laquan McDonald dashcam footage was released. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...donald-officers-fired-timeline-htmlstory.html

Oh, and Blaine Gabbert wasn't officially named the starter until September 3. http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/17458863/blaine-gabbert-starting-quarterback-san-francisco-49ers

As to #2, even if we accept your characterization of his experience with oppression as valid your point is still invalid. It states that he cannot bring awareness to a situation he has never personally experienced. I think all of the ESPN staff who participate in the Jimmy V cancer awareness marathon who themselves have never had cancer would disagree. So would all of the NFL players who wear pink in October yet themselves have never had breast cancer. So would all of the veterans raising funds for projects like Wounded Warrior even though they themselves were not wounded in the line of duty. I could go on but I won't.

 

[brycejones]

This is a false narrative. As to #1, you're forgetting or omitting several important facts. You state that Kaepernick only started caring after he became a backup. Kaepernick was placed on season-ending IR on or around November 21, 2015. https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...kaepernick-goes-on-season-ending-ir/76174080/

He first sat for the anthem on August 14, 2016.https://www.sbnation.com/2016/9/11/...-anthem-protest-seahawks-brandon-marshall-nfl

This was the first time he suited up for a game since being placed on IR the prior year. Between 11/21/15 and 8/14/16 Alton Sterling was shot and killed, Philando Castile was shot and killed and the Laquan McDonald dashcam footage was released. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...donald-officers-fired-timeline-htmlstory.html

Oh, and Blaine Gabbert wasn't officially named the starter until September 3. http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/17458863/blaine-gabbert-starting-quarterback-san-francisco-49ers

As to #2, even if we accept your characterization of his experience with oppression as valid your point is still invalid. It states that he cannot bring awareness to a situation he has never personally experienced. I think all of the ESPN staff who participate in the Jimmy V cancer awareness marathon who themselves have never had cancer would disagree. So would all of the NFL players who wear pink in October yet themselves have never had breast cancer. So would all of the veterans raising funds for projects like Wounded Warrior even though they themselves were not wounded in the line of duty. I could go on but I won't.

You're messing with his belief that the black man shouldn't be protesting and he is just doing it for attention.

In summary the reasons for and acceptable forms of protest by anyone other than white males to conservatives can be summed up by the following word:

None

 

[Homerboy]

You're messing with his belief that the black man shouldn't be protesting and he is just doing it for attention.

In summary the reasons for and acceptable forms of protest to conservatives can be summed up by the following word:

None

Not exactly true. You're more than welcome to protest if you're an opposed white male and have some tiki torches laying around.

 

[brycejones]

Not exactly true. You're more than welcome to protest if you're an opposed white male and have some tiki torches laying around.

You're correct, I've corrected my post.

 

[Starbuck1975]

This is a false narrative. As to #1, you're forgetting or omitting several important facts. You state that Kaepernick only started caring after he became a backup. Kaepernick was placed on season-ending IR on or around November 21, 2015. https://www.usatoday.com/story/spor...kaepernick-goes-on-season-ending-ir/76174080/

He first sat for the anthem on August 14, 2016.https://www.sbnation.com/2016/9/11/...-anthem-protest-seahawks-brandon-marshall-nfl

This was the first time he suited up for a game since being placed on IR the prior year. Between 11/21/15 and 8/14/16 Alton Sterling was shot and killed, Philando Castile was shot and killed and the Laquan McDonald dashcam footage was released. http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/...donald-officers-fired-timeline-htmlstory.html

Oh, and Blaine Gabbert wasn't officially named the starter until September 3. http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/17458863/blaine-gabbert-starting-quarterback-san-francisco-49ers

As to #2, even if we accept your characterization of his experience with oppression as valid your point is still invalid. It states that he cannot bring awareness to a situation he has never personally experienced. I think all of the ESPN staff who participate in the Jimmy V cancer awareness marathon who themselves have never had cancer would disagree. So would all of the NFL players who wear pink in October yet themselves have never had breast cancer. So would all of the veterans raising funds for projects like Wounded Warrior even though they themselves were not wounded in the line of duty. I could go on but I won't.

If someone didn’t tweet out the photo of him sitting during the anthem on 8/26, would we even be talking about this?

The BLM movement started in 2013. He never took a knee when he was a starting quarterback and rising star. The Martin, Brown and Garner deaths all happened as did the summer of 2015, when BLM was quite politically active.

Just seems convenient that his rise in political activism correlated to the decline in his career.

The way you framed the timeline is accurate, but similarly omitted some relevent milestones...the timeline does not negate skepticism that his activism was a PR move.

None of that matters though because the athletes to take a knee since have been authentic in their intent. I think there were better choices for Nike to endorse, but their goal was to generate buzz and brand identity, for which they wildly succeeded.

 

[nOOky]

I support Kaepernick but choosing football as the means of protest is a losing battle.
Really? American football?
More American than apple pie?
Like with the oscars back years ago when Oscar winners choose to vent during their acceptance speech. Or send someone up to vent for them. That didn't go too well.
Kaepernick has a legit gripe and protest, but during football?
I see the problem.
It just gives people like Trump reason to attack Kaepernick, and his base reason to attack liberals. Naturally his base and Fox News link Kaepernick with liberals.
I don't know the answer for Kaepernick. His attempts will be misguided at least.
All Donald Trump needs to do, and he will, is have his republican friends in congress, then this extremist US Supreme Court Trump now controls to enact law(s) banning such protests, and dishing out severe punishment for such protests.
Especially when the protest involves football, apple pie, the flag, and attacking Donald Trump.
One dare not question or doubt der fuhrer Donald Trump or what der fuhrer holds dear.

Well yea, during football, it's his medium and he used it to get his message out. Probably more effective than sitting in front of his house on the side of the street with a sign.

 

[sactoking]

It also correlated to a time in his life when he had lots of time to focus on other things, when he was rehabbing from a season-ending injury. And the "well why didn't he do it sooner?" narrative ignored the fact that people don't always act at the first input. It's not unreasonable to say "These actions were concerning and when they continued to occur I decided to say something."

 

[Ventanni]

Nike knows what they are doing, and I'm sure they did very thorough research on the potential backlash this move might bring. I'm sure this calculated move will pay off very well for Nike.

The NFL, on the other hand, has more to worry about long term. We have to take a step back for a moment to understand how branding really works. So, for the next few moments, take a step back from any Republican, Democratic, religious, or social beliefs. In the realm of marketing, you have branding campaigns, and you have direct-response campaigns. Direct-response campaigns are very effective for the direct sale of your product or service. They're easy to track, and you'll know right away if they're working or not, which is why many small businesses prefer that route. Branding campaigns affect how aware people are of your company, and changes how people perceive the trustworthiness and quality of your product and/or service. This has an absolutely gigantic effect on company's bottom lines, which is why the big companies focus a lot more on branding campaigns compared to anything else.

The problem for NFL, and they very well know this, is that in order to be an effective branding mechanism that businesses can take advantage of, you have create a positive emotion in people's minds. This is why the NFL is always associated with apple pie, the American flag and American soldiers, good games, military jets flying over top, etc. Regardless of people's political, religious, or social beliefs, just about everyone can get behind that, because it's just plain fun. That's why the NFL is such a strong branding tool for large businesses.

The problem with what Kaepernick's move is that it's now adding something divisive into the game, and that's a problem because branding works both ways: Positive emotions are amazing for your brand, and negative emotions are extremely detrimental to your brand. Every time Kaepernick or another player kneels, some people are rooting behind it, and many others are angry. That's divisive, and that's NOT good for branding. To give you an example, a few years ago, many big, big businesses pulled their advertising dollars out of YouTube, because YouTube couldn't control what their brand name was being played with. You'd have some really horrible content being played, and then next a Pepsi ad; it was really bad for their brand.

Nike will profit the heck out of this, no doubt. But the bigger issue long term is for the NFL. Are they going to continue to allow divisive issues to be played out on the field? At some point, businesses are going to find that detrimental to their brand, and they'll pull their advertising out of the NFL if this gets carried away.

 

[sandorski]

Some Towns are now trying to Ban the sale of Nikes.

 

[sandorski]

Nike knows what they are doing, and I'm sure they did very thorough research on the potential backlash this move might bring. I'm sure this calculated move will pay off very well for Nike.

The NFL, on the other hand, has more to worry about long term. We have to take a step back for a moment to understand how branding really works. So, for the next few moments, take a step back from any Republican, Democratic, religious, or social beliefs. In the realm of marketing, you have branding campaigns, and you have direct-response campaigns. Direct-response campaigns are very effective for the direct sale of your product or service. They're easy to track, and you'll know right away if they're working or not, which is why many small businesses prefer that route. Branding campaigns affect how aware people are of your company, and changes how people perceive the trustworthiness and quality of your product and/or service. This has an absolutely gigantic effect on company's bottom lines, which is why the big companies focus a lot more on branding campaigns compared to anything else.

The problem for NFL, and they very well know this, is that in order to be an effective branding mechanism that businesses can take advantage of, you have create a positive emotion in people's minds. This is why the NFL is always associated with apple pie, the American flag and American soldiers, good games, military jets flying over top, etc. Regardless of people's political, religious, or social beliefs, just about everyone can get behind that, because it's just plain fun. That's why the NFL is such a strong branding tool for large businesses.

The problem with what Kaepernick's move is that it's now adding something divisive into the game, and that's a problem because branding works both ways: Positive emotions are amazing for your brand, and negative emotions are extremely detrimental to your brand. Every time Kaepernick or another player kneels, some people are rooting behind it, and many others are angry. That's divisive, and that's NOT good for branding. To give you an example, a few years ago, many big, big businesses pulled their advertising dollars out of YouTube, because YouTube couldn't control what their brand name was being played with. You'd have some really horrible content being played, and then next a Pepsi ad; it was really bad for their brand.

Nike will profit the heck out of this, no doubt. But the bigger issue long term is for the NFL. Are they going to continue to allow divisive issues to be played out on the field? At some point, businesses are going to find that detrimental to their brand, and they'll pull their advertising out of the NFL if this gets carried away.

How is what Kapernik protested "divisive"?

 

[Jaskalas]

How is what Kapernik protested "divisive"?

Republicans want to attach their own meaning to the protest. That is it an assault to the anthem, the flag, the nation. It is an anti American protest. Least, that's the tale one would get from Fox.

 

[Homerboy]

Some Towns are now trying to Ban the sale of Nikes.

Just that one dumbass one where the mayor ordered the gov't run rec department to not purchase any Nike products or clothing. He's attempted to defend it by saying that he wanted to get ahead of the curve before it got politicized. So, to do so, he politicized it.

 

[dainthomas]

How is what Kapernik protested "divisive"?

Making racists feel bad about their racism is divisive/uncivil etc. Words white men use to pressure women and people of color into keeping quiet.

 

[jackstar7]

Do you still beat your wife?

Never have. Can you explain why you disagree with what they are protesting, since it's the thing I cited?

I didn't trap you, dude. You said it yourself.

 

[jackstar7]

It's just ironic that you all cheering a company that oppressing their worker just because their marketing is aligned with you.

The world is a complex place. We can loathe aspects of a thing and like other aspects of a thing.

 

[thraashman]

It's just ironic that you all cheering a company that oppressing their worker just because their marketing is aligned with you.

People are cheering on this campaign, the decision to make Kaepernick the face of it, and the message of the campaign. Sure it's a marketing stunt and does a great job distracting from their other issues. Much like Trump's constant terrible things he Tweets and says are him distracting from his constant failures of being an actual President.

Personally I don't buy Nike, I've had issues with their products wearing out far too quickly for me in the past.

 

[Ventanni]

How is what Kapernik protested "divisive"?

It's a completely subjective thing from person to person. Some don't see what Kaepernick is doing as divisive, but many other's do. People that I run into that do find it very divisive are usually (but not always) people who have some historical connection to the flag, and that's either because they have a family history of serving in the military or local government, come from a strong sports background where you always started a game with, "Let's all stand for the national anthem," or just grew up in a family that placed a lot of value in what the American flag represents. There is a lot of tradition behind the American flag and the rules in which it is handled and respected, and people put a lot of value behind that. You may not agree with the value, or have the same value in which they place in the American flag, and that's fine, but it's still best to honor that.

Mind you, I also work in marketing, and I look at this from a marketing perspective. The NFL, MLB, Nascar, etc are all enormously effective branding machines for businesses to associate themselves with. Politics, religion, and some social issues are all very bad for branding campaigns because they are divisive by nature.

 

[Josephus312]

It's a completely subjective thing from person to person. Some don't see what Kaepernick is doing as divisive, but many other's do. People that I run into that do find it very divisive are usually (but not always) people who have some historical connection to the flag, and that's either because they have a family history of serving in the military or local government, come from a strong sports background where you always started a game with, "Let's all stand for the national anthem," or just grew up in a family that placed a lot of value in what the American flag represents. There is a lot of tradition behind the American flag and the rules in which it is handled and respected, and people put a lot of value behind that. You may not agree with the value, or have the same value in which they place in the American flag, and that's fine, but it's still best to honor that.

Mind you, I also work in marketing, and I look at this from a marketing perspective. The NFL, MLB, Nascar, etc are all enormously effective branding machines for businesses to associate themselves with. Politics, religion, and some social issues are all very bad for branding campaigns because they are divisive by nature.

Taking a knee before the flag isn't disrespecting the flag at all and everyone knows that. Trumpistas wanting to play pretend that it is are not worth the fluff that magically assembles between my toes in the late hours of the night.