Unsportsmanlike Conduct
Why is it when I hear TV sports commentators, leagues and teams spokespersons and network executives extol the greatness of former athletes and the importance of the event of the day I feel that that they are not always telling the truth? Oh, I know why. Because they often are not telling the truth.
For those who make a living in the sports business it’s anything goes as long as it keeps cash registers going cha-ching, cha-ching, cha-ching.
Ever since the first business was established in the U.S., the overriding objective was to make money, the workers who helped build the entities be damned. But of all the businesses, a very good case can be made that the sports business ranks near the top, if not at the top, of propagandizing the American public.
Some people might say that I am a hypocrite because I spent a sizable chunk of my career in the sport’s business, first as a sports reporter and then as a sports marketing guru. But in fact at Burson-Marsteller I preached that any athlete used for promotion purposes should be vetted to make certain that they were not tarnished goods. I also told all individuals to never lie or mislead a reporter. And, importantly, I also said that having a nexus with sports might not be the best way for a client to stand out from the pack.
There are many examples that I can cite showing why the sports business is untrustworthy.
Below are several significant one from the past, to be followed by one that I think will make headlines in the future.
From The Past
For years the National Football League denied that concussions caused chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). The league also attempted to destroy the reputation of Bennet Omalu, the forensic pathologist who discovered the nexus in 2002, as well as other medical scientists.
Major League Baseball powers looked the other way when players were taking performance enhancing products (steroids). The league finally took action after a Congressional Committee in 2005 said that if MLB doesn’t do something about steroid use, Congress will.
There are many other examples that could be cited, such as leagues threatening to relocate unless tax-funded new stadiums are built, and giving slaps on the wrist punishments to athletes who committed unsportsmanlike conduct that would have you or I fired. And, of course, with the Paris Olympics opening ceremonies drawing closer (from July 26 to August 11) the International Olympic Committee and its affiliates, and brands that sponsor the Olympics, and the networks that televise the games (in the U.S. it’s NBC Universal) turn a blind eye to the bribery and other seedy dealings necessary for a country to become an Olympic host.
In The Future
Sport entities, unhealthy junk foods and the networks that broadcast the games have always been linked for many decades. And protecting fans and TV viewers from insalubrious products has never been a concern.
In the not too distance future, I predict a public outlash about two products that are most heavily advertised on sporting events – alcoholic beverages and gambling.
At the present time, there is little state governments can do to curtail TV advertisements enticing viewers to gamble because of the Supreme Court decision. But as the adverse effects that gambling has on individuals become more known and reported on, that may eventually change. (It took decades before President Richard Nixon signed legislation banning the advertising of tobacco products on television (in 1970), despite evidence associating tobacco products with deadly diseases being known for years.
The situation with alcoholic beverages is different. Long known by medical researchers, but seldom reported on, is the link between alcoholic beverages and cancer. But recently, the link has been receiving major media coverage, which always attracts the attention of government officials.
A post by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), the federal government's principal agency for cancer research and training, in September 2023 by Carmen Phillips said, in part, “Drinking alcohol increases the risk of at least seven types of cancers. For people being treated for cancer, regularly consuming a few beers or cocktails also has other potentially harmful consequences, including making their treatments less effective. And for longer-term cancer survivors, there is some evidence that regular alcohol use may increase the chances of their cancer returning.
“But results from a new study suggest that this information may not be reaching people who fall into either of these two categories.”
And a report, in part, on the Center For Disease Control (CDC) website, said, “The less alcohol you drink, the lower your risk for cancer. Drinking alcohol raises your risk of getting several kinds of cancer—. Mouth and throat. Voice box (larynx). Esophagus. Colon and rectum. Liver. Breast (in women)”. The reports said, “All alcoholic drinks, including red and white wine, beer, and liquor, are linked with cancer. The more you drink, the higher your cancer risk.”
More recently, a lengthy article in the April 9, 2024, New York Times was headlined, “A Debate Over Cancer Warning Labels on Alcohol:” (like there is on tobacco products).
The article, by Ted Alcorn, said, “The evidence linking drinking and cancer is well established. In 1988, the World Health Organization’s International Agency for Research on Cancer concluded that alcohol is carcinogenic to humans. Research in the decades since has only strengthened the conclusion, including for breast, liver, colorectal and esophageal cancers. In November, the W.H.O. and the I.A.R.C. declared in a joint statement: “No safe amount of alcohol consumption for cancers can be established.”
“Despite this, continued the article, “the connection between alcohol and cancer isn’t well known. In the United States, a recent nationwide survey found that about one in three Americans was aware that drinking increased the risk of cancer.”
Of course, just as the tobacco lobby fought against the restrictions and warning labels and the gambling industry will fight any challenges to restrict its “gambling is fun” TV commercials, the alcoholic beverage lobby is doing so in Europe and Asia, where some countries are seriously considering the warnings, unlike the U.S.
But eventually as the topic receives greater media coverage in the U.S., politicians will become more involved and warnings on alcoholic beverages will be the norm, I predict. But too late to protect thousands of people from becoming victims of cancer and other deadly diseases caused by alcoholic beverages. (What’s not known to most people is that at one time owners of baseball teams prohibited beer from being sold in ballparks. In fact, several National League teams were once removed from the league for allowing beer and liquor to be sold at ballgames.)
It may take years for the labeling to happen. In the meantime, the sports business will still remain in partnership with the alcoholic beverage industry, because for the moguls of sport, it’s not who wins or loses a game, or how many people can be damaged by unhealthy products, it’s how much money they make. You can bet on it.
PR Practitioners Take Note
If you want to demonstrate your ability to manage, being assigned to a sports marketing campaign does not give you the best opportunity to shine. That’s because most sports marketing campaigns are similar. As a result, the overwhelming majority of client-sponsored sports marketing program stories are relegated to trade books. Even though I was the sports marketing guru at Burson-Marsteller for many years, I also told colleagues that I was available to help out on non-sports accounts. It was my contributions on those accounts that most impressed top management and clients. My suggestion is to do the same.
