Rou

Rise is perhaps the wrong word. It's not a new thing. It's just on a larger scale now. All of the old game shows and variety shows were sponsored. Before and after commercial breaks, they'd mention the sponsor. They'd work into sponsor products where ever possible.

Nothing new really. Over the course of my life, I've come to accept that. It's ok.

But the past decade has seen new levels of sponsorship deals as the tentacles of corporations reach farther and farther trying to bury themselves into our consciousness.

For example, think back to all the movies you’ve ever seen. How many Macs have you seen out in the movie universe? To judge by movies, most people use Macs. Because Apple puts a lot of money out there to get sponsorship deals with movie producers.

The other thing that gets me is sports advertisements. Now, I’m not talking about green-screening ad behind the batters during a baseball game. I’m talking about the sponsorship of the Rose Bowl. Or should I say, the ADT Rose Bowl, and the winners will receive this trophy of their victory (don’t mind the ugly ass ADT insignia that we’ve etched onto it)

When I first got into football, certain stadiums had names that commanded respect. Mile High Stadium. RFK. Candlestick Park. What do we have now? Invesco Field. 3Com park. Fed-Ex Field. McAfee Coliseum. RCA Dome. Lincoln Financial Field. All over the country, in every sport, honored venues sell their naming rights for vast sums of money.

Recently, I think I heard the worst example. This year, due to the horrific damage done, Mardi Gras will have a sponsors to help offset the cost to the city. Not just one, but several. For 2 million a pop, four or five companies will get to plaster their name all over the famous city. In doing so, not only do they get the good press of “aiding the city”, and the massive revenue generated during the enormous celebration; they get to set a precedent. If there is anything we have learned from sponsorship deal in the past it’s this: once a new area of sponsorship is opened, it is almost never revoked. So, most likely, Mardi Gras will be branded yearly with new corporate identities.

I understand the reasoning to an extent. They want to raise name recognition to help sales. Movies, sports stadiums, and apparently even world famous parties are all just means toward that end. But I can’t help but think that Mile High Stadium inspires the soul more than Investco Field. That our lives are better off without Smirnoff Ice’s Mardi Gras Extravaganza.

That maybe, in the pursuit of profit, we have given up a little too much ground.