His name is Tiger and you're sick of hearing about him. This RANT is not about moral crusading, nor is it about sport directly, although those two subjects being intrinsically linked to the central character in today's story, we will be subjected to a cameo appearance from both. The fact is, I don't care about Tiger Woods from the viewpoint of either of these things. I have never found him to be charismatic or charming in interviews and I don't care to watch professional golf. His very public fall from grace has been by-the-numbers gossip column fodder writ large and published in our daily newspapers and current affairs magazines. There is, for me, nothing new to tell with regards to his moral standards or whether this should have any bearing on his ability to play at the highest level of his chosen sport.

The point at which things really change up for me is the reaction to the controversy of his corporate backers whose multi-million dollar sponsorships have turned him into a marketable product. And of these corporate sponsors, the biggest, fattest cat is Nike. No strangers to controversy themselves, Nike have been harshly criticised during the past 25 years for manufacturing operations accused of minimum wage exploitation, poor working conditions and a reticence to openly discuss details pertaining to such. The company has been overwhelmingly successful in part to the quality of their sportswear, but also because of their aggressive and innovative advertising campaigns.

Recognising the huge benefits of sportstar endorsements early, Nike has been associated with sporting personalities (and I will resist referring to these people as legends) from Steve Prefontaine, Carl Lewis, Michael Jordan and Tiger Woods. An exhaustive list of their current and past endorsees is available on Wikipedia. The Nike 'swoosh' became synonymous with sporting prowess and the battle of major sports clothing brands was arguably won by Nike in the 80's and 90's, and due in part to the name being so closely linked to NBA champion Michael Jordan. So in the event that a major endorsee, worth millions to the company's bottom line each quarter is involved in the kind of moral minefield of extra-marital affairs, the public relations department goes into containment mode.

When a current affairs topic grabs the attention of the general public in this way, the results can be divisive. Tiger Woods was once held as the highwater mark by which the dignity and integrity of all other professional sports people were measured. A quietly-spoken, seemingly humble man who was neither flashy and ostentatious, nor prone to running off his mouth whenever he was within earshot of the press, Tiger Woods was (and is) a valuable commodity. But Tiger Woods the product, and Tiger Woods the man are two completely different things, and we have seen that one has the power to all but destroy the other.

The television advertising campaign that accompanied Woods' return to professional golf this past week was nothing if not inspired. For those of you who may not have seen it, Tiger is presented in stark black and white staring directly at the camera while the voice of his father, the now deceased Earl Woods, is heard off-camera enquiring "I want to find out what you're thinking was, I want to find out what your feelings are and did you learn anything?". The inference is that Tiger is being quizzed by his late father; an important figure in his life and career. The audio actually relates to an answer Earl Woods gave in interview about his wife, but has been repatriated in the commercial in a method that could be construed as a public dressing down by Phil Knight and the Nike corporate board. The commercial has been aired in prime time spots, but has gained invaluable exposure through news agencies as the perception of controversy turns the marketing campaign into a fully-fledged news item.

Even now, as I write about the commercial, Nike are succeeding, because they have embraced the controversy. The PR department understood that silence on the subject would be as damning as any direct action against Tiger; something I'm sure would have been discussed at the higher eschelons, but fairly quickly disregarded. This was an issue that was handled expertly, and timed to perfection. Whether Tiger won the US Masters or not is kind of irrelevant; he will surely go on to cement his reputation as one of the greatest sportspeople of his generation. Unfortunately for his family, the scrutiny of his private life will also continue, so long as the weekly magazines continue to clog up hairdressers' waiting rooms and doctors' surgeries.

Nike will skirt around the controversy relatively unscathed because they are ultimately faceless and answerable to a higher (and less morally concerned) power; their shareholders.