Does Nike Ad Exploit Obese Boy?

From the Globe and Mail:

"Twelve-year-old Nathan Sorrell jogs down a country road. He’s 5-foot-3 and weighs 200 pounds. He nears the camera, panting. (video link) 

“Greatness is not some rare DNA strand. We’re all capable of it,” a voice intones in the video, an ad for Nike that ran during the Olympics, purporting to highlight everyday feats of greatness."

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/the-hot-button/does-this-nike-ad-exploit-an-obese-boy/article4479445/

No, not in my mind. If someone is improving their health and inspires others, I can't see the fault. Millions of people see these ads during the Olympics and I can't help but think even if one obese kid was inspired to do something, or have hope, it's a good thing regardless if the actor is actually jogging in his own life or not.

Vintage Weight GAIN Advertisements

See more here:

http://www.retronaut.co/2011/11/vintage-weight-gain-ads/

Is Wendy a Good Spokesperson for a New High-Calorie, High-Fat Burger?

Wendy Thomas in TV ad

The Wendy's fast food chain has new ads for a new high calorie burger featuring the namesake of the restaurant, Wendy Thomas, daughter of the late Dave Thomas. What my family and friends find unusual about her in this ad is that she's significantly overweight. Although there's certainly nothing wrong with overweight people selling burgers, it seems odd because there's a special context here.

800 calorie double Big 'n' Juicy burger

What if Ronald McDonald was fat? We know that she grew up with her dad owning this successful chain of restaurants and here she is, beautiful, radiant, and charming, but noticeably overweight, seemingly proof that being around fast food may not be healthy. What's worse is that she's selling one of their fattest, most calorie-ridden burgers yet. The Dave's Big 'n' Juicy as pictured is 800 calories, competing perhaps with McDonald's' new 800 calorie 1/3 pound Angus burgers (I thought fast food was supposed to be getting healthier. I'll say it again: The Big Mac at 500 calories now looks like a 'lite' burger.)

• See MSNBC story on the new burger

I'm not entirely sure what to make of this ad and my (our) response to it, but it is certainly something to think about. I will say this: It took some chutzpah on the part of Wendy Thomas and the ad agency to use an overweight spokesperson who happens to be the face of the chain, normally in caricature as a child, now grown up and presumably not a picture of perfect health.

48 grams of fat, for crying out loud, and she brags about the buns of this burger being buttered! Because they just didn't have enough fat in the ground beef, cheese and mayo!