Driven by the Media
Jun 11th, 2008 by S.A. Habib
Something’s been bugging me since last Saturday. I caught a little of the final leg of horse racing’s Triple Crown, The Belmont Stakes. From ten minutes before and ten minutes after the actual race, all the network announcers could talk about was the favorite Big Brown. All the network would show were images of Big Brown. The only jockey that was riding that day was Big Brown’s and there was only one trainer at the track. You guessed it, Big Brown’s. ABC was so invested in Big Brown that they had nothing to say about any other horse in the race.
Then they ran the race.
And Big Brown decided he didn’t want to run that day. Good for him. But here’s the sad part. Even after the race was over and there was another winner, all ABC talked about and showed was Big Brown. The loser! There were no victory shots of the winner. No horseback interview with the winning jockey. No shots of the winning owners jumping up and down. No Teary-eyed views of the jockey’s wife. Nothing but Big Brown being unsaddled, Big Brown walking to the paddock, Big Brown looking happy the race was over, Big Brown’s trainer sweating like a pig…it was all Big Brown.
Ten minutes after the end of the race, they showed a quick shot of the winner being presented a blanket of carnations, as is the custom at Belmont. Then back to Big Brown and more Big Brown.
Bad job ABC. How about giving a little love to all the little brands out here.
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About the author: S. A. Habib, founder of Locomotion Creative in Nashville, Tennessee, a.k.a. The Big Brown Man. He’s big and brown, thus the title. He’s been doing smart advertising/marketing thinking for smarter clients for 30+ years. Find your center!
