Nike's new church ads lack taste

Detroit News ^ | January 8, 2004 | Luther Keith

[Holly_P]

Is the black church a joke? Has it become just another marketing tool to pry $110 from our children to convince them to buy gym shoes that they believe will endow them with superhuman powers on the basketball court?

I couldn

[Inyokern]

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[willyboyishere]

Of course, they'll say it's "satire", just good fun, in fact, hey, we're making fun of OURSELVES, don'tcha see?

I'd love to hear what the Baptist Rev. Hilson, who was just on Hannity and Colmes, would say about this. He was plenty incensed at the Dean campaign, who wanted to visit his church, then when they got the photo op of Mr. and Mrs. sitting among the parishioners, suddenly were "rushed" and too pressed for time to stay for services. Hilson said they were "pimping" his church for their own purposes, and he was right.

[skr]

Sacrilegious, at the very least. The reference to the basketball player as the "chosen one" in that setting is blasphemous.

[martin_fierro]

It's tha bling-bling, yo.

[Holly_P]

Hilson said they were "pimping" his church for their own purposes, and he was right.

I saw that. He ripped Lieberman too for the same thing. he also explained that there was another Baptist church in town that was twice as big as his but the politicians choose his because it is black.

I wish more black preachers would speak out on this hypocracy. It's almost exclusively a democrat thing and it just makes me sick every time I see it.<p?

[Quix]

PREACH IT SISTER HOLLY! I SAAAAAYYYYYYYYYY PREACH IT!!!!

HALLELUJAH AND PREACH IT SOME MOAH!!!!!

[gov_bean_ counter]

suddenly were "rushed" and too pressed for time to stay for services. Hilson said they were "pimping" his church for their own purposes, and he was right.

Aside from the length of the stay, please explain how this is any different from behaviors of Clinton, Gore or any number of other Dems seeking public office in an election that could be determined by minority turnout.

[Holly_P]

I will vote in my first election ever in November and I almost dread having to listen to this democrat dreck for the rest of my life.

Sometimes I believe that ignorance truly is bliss.I talk to some of my student friends about politics and they don't have a clue about what I am talking about. They have never heard of "the 9 dwarfs" "Rinos" "neo cons" "paleo cons" They think Dean is a moderate and ...aw forget it..

[cyborg]

I was about to say that I saw that same picture in a catholic supply store :-)

[John Beresford Tipton]

"Is the black church a joke?"

I was told never to ask such a question unless:
1. you were sure of the answer, and,
2. you would like the answer.

[Paul Atreides]

I don't care for Nike, but I noticed that the author of this article fails to touch on the fact that Nike wouldn't have had much of an ad, without the willing participation of the celebrities and the actors.

[Pikamax]

I would say the ad has a church of basketball and its a take off of the blues brother skit.

[concentric circles]

Basketball Jones, I got a Basketball Jones...
Yes, I am the victim of a Basketball Jones...
I need help, ladies and gentlemens.
I need someone to stand beside me.
I need, I need someone to set a pick for me
at the free-throw line of life...

Oh yeah, sing it out like you're proud...
Oh, it feels so good.
Gimme the ball.

I'll go one-on-one against the world, left-handed...
I could dribble behind my back.
I got more moves than Ex-Lax.
I'm bad.
I could dribble with my tongue. Here I go.
You can't stop me 'cause
I got a Basketball Jones...

Basketball Jones Featuring Tyrone Shoelaces.
From Born In East L.A. by Cheech & Chong.

[Derrald]

Ask 30 random black people, "Do you think that commercial was insensitive to the black church?"

The answer will be no in 90% of your respondents. I can guarantee that. Seriously, what the hell happened to the America where we wouldn't get offended by every little thing that pokes fun at other people?

Whine, whine, whine. It's all I ever see anymore! Seriously, get something else to be offended by!

[July 4th]

My favorite! Jesus, the ball-hog.

[willyboyishere]

I didn't say it WAS any different. It's classic political hypocrisy, and it's always more grating when Dems practice it, who are usually more hypocritical and hungry for photo ops of this kind than their Republican counterparts. The incident I spoke of involved leading candidate HOWARD DEAN, another Dem, who reminds me in many ways of Clinton, but without the rancid "charm" and easy glibness of manner.
Did you think I was talking about this Reverend Hilson claiming that BUSH did this? Hilson was really irked and couldn;t help laughing and shaking his head at the memory of it---it used to be that pols would restrict this kind of thing to photo ops of themselves dutifully going into ethnic neighborhoods and manfully trying to get their mouths around large sausage sandwichs and the like to court the respective ethnic vote.

[DAPFE8900]

OH I turn everytime that damn commercial is on..SO DAMN ANNOYING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[WKB]

the "chosen one" in

The Chosen One wore sandals