2. 外语
  3. Using popular athletes to endorse and pitch companies and their products has become commonplace in advertising. U.S. companies p

Using popular athletes to endorse and pitch companies and their products has become commonplace in advertising. U.S. companies p

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问题     Using popular athletes to endorse and pitch companies and their products has become commonplace in advertising. U.S. companies paid more than $1 billion to nearly 2,000 athletes for endorsement deals and licensing rights in 1996 — a tenfold increase from just a decade ago. Nike alone spends more than $100 million a year on endorsement contracts. The average athlete on the Forbes super 40 list of top-earning athletes commands around $250,000 a year for a national endorsement. Superstar Michael Jordan, the athlete who makes the most from endorsements, considers only multiyear deals that pay at least $10 million. In addition to the endorsement fees, companies spend another $10 billion to advertise and promote their association to these athletes.
    While companies are investing huge sums of money into the concept that athletes make good promoter, they are also recognizing that choosing a celebrity endorser is no longer a matter of personal taste and top-management whimsy. Several companies have been badly burned when their high-priced endorsers were involved in messy scandals and controversies. Hertz Corp. used O.J. Simpson as its spokesperson for 20 years and lost all of that equity when he was accused of murdering his ex-wife and her friend. Smaller companies face even greater risks when they entrust their name and image to an athlete. When Dallas Cowboys football star Michael Irvin was caught in a motel room with strippers and drugs, 13 Toyota dealerships that paid him $120,000 to do a series of commercials had little choice but to pull the ads and swallow the $400,000 in production costs. When Irvin refused to return his payment, as well as a $50,000 car the dealerships had lent him, they sued, the case settled out of court.
    Risk management has become a major consideration for companies considering using athletes as endorsers. However, many marketers are willing to take chance on irreverent or rebellious athletes whose outlandish behavior draws attention to them. For example, basketball star Dennis Rodman has parlayed his bad image into endorsement contracts with Nike, McDonald’s, Pizza Hut, Comfort Inn, and Converse. Rodman’s sponsors believe he appeals to the elusive Generation X market that these companies are trying to reach. However, Rodman’s antics have become too much for some companies. The Carl’s Jr. fast-food chain temporarily suspended its relationship with Rodman in early 1997 when he was suspended for kicking a courtside photographer during a game.
    Most companies are moving away from controversial athletes and looking for ones who will not just attract attention but enhance the image of the company or brand they are endorsing. Their goal is to achieve an endorser’s halo effect—a positive association that bathes the product in good vibes after a popular sports celebrity has pitched it. Marketers have discovered that there are a number of "nice guys" available to endorse their products. Among them are tennis stars Pete Sampras and Michael Chang(who has emerged as the most popular athlete in Asia by far), San Francisco quarterback Steve Young, baseball iron man Cal Ripken Jr., Los Angeles Lakers basketball star Shaquille O’Neal, hockey star Wayne Gretzky, and golfer Tiger Woods. Even former stars with likable personalities and images as positive role models are still popular, including Arnold Palmer, Joe Montana, Jim Paler, Nolan Ryan, and Chris Evert.
    Perhaps nobody embodies the new breed of nice guy superstar better than basketball star Grant Hill. An Ail-American at Duke, he stayed all four years and graduated with his class. His father, Calvin, played football at Yale and was a star with the Dallas Cowboys. During his first two years in the NBA, Hill received more fan votes for a spot on the NBA All-Star team than any other player, including Michael Jordan.
    The biggest beneficiary of Grant Hill’s nonabrasive, good-humored, All-American image has been Fila, and Italian company that signed Hill to an endorsement contract in 1994. Since signing Hill, Fila has become the third-largest sneaker maker in the Unites States. Sales shot up 37 percent in 1995 and another 40 percent in 1996 to $750 million. Hill’s "nice guys" image appeals to the current sensibilities of Middle American.
    Three years ago basketball star Charles Barkey appeared in a Nike commercial where he glowered at the camera and declared "I am not a role model". Since then, his endorsement take been cut in half. Hill readily acknowledges "I am a role model". In addition to getting $ 6 million a year from Fila plus a 5 percent royalty on the sale of his shoes, Hill has endorse contract with Sprite, GMC trucks, Kellogg’s and McDonald’s. It appears that nice guys are finishing first in the endorsement game.
Which of the following best states the main idea of this passage?
选项 A、Dallas Cowboys football star Michael Irvin made 13 Toyota dealerships pull the ads and swallow the $400,000 in production costs.
B、Nice guys have far more effects on U.S. companies than the irreverent athletes.
C、Basketball star Grant Hill, embodies the new breed of nice guy superstar better than any other athlete.
D、Risk management has become a major consideration for companies considering using athletes as endorsers.
答案D
解析 根据文章内容可知，本文主要介绍了公司在聘请体育明星做代言人时面临的风险，故D项可以作为文章的主旨。其他三项均为具体细节，不宜作为文章主旨。据此判断，答案是D。
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