Of the 27 NFL teams which operate Web sites, "nearly
half ... devote special sections to cheerleaders," according
to David Sweet of the WALL STREET JOURNAL, who wrote that
the "women pose for bikini-clad photographs and answer
Playboy tough questions." For an example, Sweet noted that
on the Eagles Web site, www.eaglesnet.com, visitors can
click on "Index of Previous Cheerleaders," and then on
"Jamie" to "see the strings of her bikini top undone and her
hands on her breasts." But Eagles Senior VP/Marketing &
Administration Len Komoroski said that the team tries "to do
things tastefully" and hasn't heard "any negative feedback."
Jupiter Communications analyst Patrick Keane said teams
"know how to attract eyeballs." Keane: "The demographics
line right up in terms of the football fan and cheerleaders.
Advertisers follow audience, and they can reach a sports fan
and a heated-sexual-content fan." Meanwhile, teams are
"capitalizing" on the popularity of their cheerleaders
through e-commerce. The NFL's official site NFL.com
"provides special pages for each franchise, but none contain
pictures of cheerleaders" (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 7/28).
