During 1980’s Michael Jordan became one of the biggest hit sensations in the history of sports. He was renowned for his infamous athleticism all over the world. It was also during this era that the media flourished and with it, advertisement opportunities for companies wanting to sell their products. Michael was the target for most of these industries because he was thought to be an individual with high morals and a role model for society. Michael became the new sensation and according to The Sports Spectacle, Michael Jordan, and Nike: Unholy Alliance? that is even where the legendary logo “Just do it” came from. Soon, both became associated and representative of each other, and if one went array so did the other one. Nike was exploited for giving extremely low wages to factory workers, which ended up reflecting on Michael. Michael was questioned several times on what he thought about the situation remarked that he could not control what Nike did or did not do. Have industries and athletes been regarded as one entity or are they, as Michael believed, separate? Today, sports teams are drenched with advertisements from within the athlete’s gear to the score boards. Industries depend on athletes to endorse their products, and athletes depend on industries for an income. The two are obviously connected but to what degree is the question. Would athletes today cut their ties with an industry like Nike for the wages of factory workers? I have a feeling that most would not. This aspect of sport has spiraled into a huge money making business, and since we are humans we want the most we can possibly get. Athletes and industries need to recognize who they are signing with so that they will not create a negative image on each other. One way to possibly fix this issue is to place restrictions on one another, which something very hard to control. Once an affiliation is formed there is nothing either party can do, they have taken a chance and live with the consequences.
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