Post by outgirl on May 12, 2004 16:38:32 GMT -5
Fox News star Bill O'Reilly yesterday slammed Reebok International Ltd. for its ties to 50 Cent, a top-selling rap artist who is expected to put out a pornographic video later this year.
``Reebok should be ashamed of themselves,'' O'Reilly told the Herald before his show last night in which he slammed the Canton shoemaker and its rapper pitchman. ``They're embracing a guy who's hurting children.''
The Congress of Racial Equality identified what it considers the five worst rappers and their corporate ties on ``The O'Reilly Factor'' show last night. 50 Cent and Reebok came in at No. 3.
``Corporate pollution is not just dumping PCBs in the Charles River,'' the outspoken talk show host said. ``It's allowing people to put out these horrible CDs.''
When O'Reilly targets a company, corporate ears tend to perk up.
Last year, he took aim at PepsiCo Inc. over its ties to rapper Ludacris. PepsiCo bowed to the pressure and dumped a Ludacris ad campaign after O'Reilly told loyal viewers he wouldn't drink Pepsi because of the rapper's vulgar lyrics.
Earlier this month, O'Reilly said he'd snub Anheuser-Busch products after the St. Louis brewer hired Ludacris as a pitchman.
``I'm not calling for boycotts,'' O'Reilly said. ``I just say I'm not doing business with them.''
50 Cent, a former crack dealer who survived nine bullet wounds, has teamed up with a unit of Hollywood-based adult entertainment company All Media Play to produce an interactive sex video. The DVD will ``take viewers inside his X-rated hip-hop lifestyle,'' an All Media Play statement said.
While 50 Cent won't actually perform sexual acts in the video, others will. After trumpeting 50 Cent's involvement in January, All Media later downplayed it after O'Reilly went on the attack.
In a bid to better connect with young, trend-setting consumers, Reebok last year inked a long-term endorsement deal with 50 Cent that included signature shoe lines.
Analysts said it's working. The 50 Cent G-6 sneaker, launched in November, is a top seller for retailers.
``They're doing very well,'' said John Shanley, a Wells Fargo Securities analyst. ``It's a very successful shoe. The sell-through rate is one of the best ever for a Reebok product in Foot Locker (stores.)''
Shanley said he wouldn't expect the signature shoe sales to suffer if O'Reilly goes after Reebok.
It might even produce the opposite effect. Reebok products backed by basketball star Allen Iverson got a boost from publicity surrounding his arrest in 2002.
As it did with Iverson, Reebok is standing by the rapper, whose given name is Curtis Jackson.
``We enjoy working with 50 Cent and recognize the excitement he brings to our brand,'' Reebok said in a statement, noting the rapper donates 50 cents to charity from the sale of each pair, which range in price from $39.99, for the toddler model, to $80.50.
Reebok said it doesn't condone every action of its hundreds of athletic and entertainment endorsers but it does support their rights to free expression.
O'Reilly said Reebok should ``absolutely'' cut ties to 50 Cent.
adult, alone, is not the problem, O'Reilly said. Instead, it's ``the overall business relationship'' with a rapper who puts out thuggish and sexually explicit lyrics.
``It's a horrible influence on children,'' he said. ``It's desensitizing them. Ten-year-old little boys are calling 10-year-old little girls `bitches' and `hos.
www.tymelyne.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=906#906
``Reebok should be ashamed of themselves,'' O'Reilly told the Herald before his show last night in which he slammed the Canton shoemaker and its rapper pitchman. ``They're embracing a guy who's hurting children.''
The Congress of Racial Equality identified what it considers the five worst rappers and their corporate ties on ``The O'Reilly Factor'' show last night. 50 Cent and Reebok came in at No. 3.
``Corporate pollution is not just dumping PCBs in the Charles River,'' the outspoken talk show host said. ``It's allowing people to put out these horrible CDs.''
When O'Reilly targets a company, corporate ears tend to perk up.
Last year, he took aim at PepsiCo Inc. over its ties to rapper Ludacris. PepsiCo bowed to the pressure and dumped a Ludacris ad campaign after O'Reilly told loyal viewers he wouldn't drink Pepsi because of the rapper's vulgar lyrics.
Earlier this month, O'Reilly said he'd snub Anheuser-Busch products after the St. Louis brewer hired Ludacris as a pitchman.
``I'm not calling for boycotts,'' O'Reilly said. ``I just say I'm not doing business with them.''
50 Cent, a former crack dealer who survived nine bullet wounds, has teamed up with a unit of Hollywood-based adult entertainment company All Media Play to produce an interactive sex video. The DVD will ``take viewers inside his X-rated hip-hop lifestyle,'' an All Media Play statement said.
While 50 Cent won't actually perform sexual acts in the video, others will. After trumpeting 50 Cent's involvement in January, All Media later downplayed it after O'Reilly went on the attack.
In a bid to better connect with young, trend-setting consumers, Reebok last year inked a long-term endorsement deal with 50 Cent that included signature shoe lines.
Analysts said it's working. The 50 Cent G-6 sneaker, launched in November, is a top seller for retailers.
``They're doing very well,'' said John Shanley, a Wells Fargo Securities analyst. ``It's a very successful shoe. The sell-through rate is one of the best ever for a Reebok product in Foot Locker (stores.)''
Shanley said he wouldn't expect the signature shoe sales to suffer if O'Reilly goes after Reebok.
It might even produce the opposite effect. Reebok products backed by basketball star Allen Iverson got a boost from publicity surrounding his arrest in 2002.
As it did with Iverson, Reebok is standing by the rapper, whose given name is Curtis Jackson.
``We enjoy working with 50 Cent and recognize the excitement he brings to our brand,'' Reebok said in a statement, noting the rapper donates 50 cents to charity from the sale of each pair, which range in price from $39.99, for the toddler model, to $80.50.
Reebok said it doesn't condone every action of its hundreds of athletic and entertainment endorsers but it does support their rights to free expression.
O'Reilly said Reebok should ``absolutely'' cut ties to 50 Cent.
adult, alone, is not the problem, O'Reilly said. Instead, it's ``the overall business relationship'' with a rapper who puts out thuggish and sexually explicit lyrics.
``It's a horrible influence on children,'' he said. ``It's desensitizing them. Ten-year-old little boys are calling 10-year-old little girls `bitches' and `hos.
www.tymelyne.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=906#906
