Kobe Bryant recently released a video of himself jumping over a speeding car, or at least appearing to jump over a speeding car. While the video is likely some special effect, the stunt is incredibly stupid and irresponsible. He starts the video by showing off his new Nike's which makes me believe that this is part of some kind of ad campaign.
The video has been shown on numerous news shows this morning and will undoubtedly get sent around until everyone has seen it.
The problem will come when the first stupid person decides to try it themselves to show off. The first broken neck, paralyzed or dead kid will make Kobe and Nike look incredibly irresponsible. I would not be surprised if they get sued and it becomes a big mess.
While I don't want to sound like the grumpy parent that I am, I can't help but point out that this is stupid and irresponsible behavior and the perhaps the dark side of social media marketing. Kobe has a huge following despite his problems off the court. Kobe's jersey is the number one most popular jersey in the US and even in China. Kids who don't know any better and adults who are stupid enough to try to emulate their heroes are going to see if they can do this too.
While a pair of Nike's costs $130 bucks, a kid's life priceless. Nike and Kobe should start thinking now about how they get themselves out of that mess. It's coming soon.
Technorati Tags: Kobe Bryant, Nike, social responsibility, social media marketing
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