Media
Staying out of the way
Sponsor Cadillac let powerful moment stand on its own at ESPYS
Cadillac has sponsored the ESPYS’ Arthur Ashe Courage Award for the past four years. But this year, as 141 of Larry Nassar’s abuse victims took the stage to be honored as “Sister Survivors,” Cadillac’s brand was nowhere to be seen. I called ESPN to find out why the award’s sponsor was not part of the most powerful and emotional sports media moment of the year.
Executives said the moment that came at the end of the awards show was so emotional and intense, it didn’t make sense to attach any sponsor’s brand message. Instead, ESPN created a 30-second spot that ran mid-show alerting viewers to what was coming up, using language saying that Cadillac “proudly sponsored” the award. Cadillac also is donating vehicles to several women’s organizations on behalf of the survivors and the Ashe Award.
“This moment was so completely different than anything we’ve done in the past,” said Sean Hanrahan, ESPN’s senior vice president of marketing solutions and brand marketing.
In past years, Cadillac’s brand was part of the Ashe Award presentation. Last year, for example, after Special Olympics founder Eunice Kennedy Shriver’s son Tim accepted the award, Cadillac billboards appeared on screen with notes of congratulations.
For its part, Cadillac appeared to be happy with the decision. It released a statement through ESPN PR saying that it is “proud to support such an outstanding honor.”
