Over the last 3 years, we’ve seen a lot of stupid stories around Michael Vick and his crimes and failures.  We have seen relatively few proposals for how Michael Vick might work to repair the damage he has done, but none of the suggestions, recommendations, or calls for immediate action I can recall seem to be quite as stupid (and created to garnish free publicity for an unrelated party) as PlayGirl’s offer to pay PETA $1 million if Michael Vick gets naked for the cameras.

Disclaimer – This site has nothing to do with PETA, never has and probably never will other than sharing a common goal in regards to Mr. Vick.

For those that would like to see Michael Vick humiliated, this offer may tread water.  For those remaining fans that think the dog killing Michael Vick might be an attractive person with or without clothes, this may tread some water.

But for anyone that gets 5 words past the headline that basically gets Playgirl some free press and attention, its just idiotic.  Personally, I don’t care if Michael Vick does this or not, but it certainly will not help anyone.

The 29-year-old quarterback, who served 21 months in prison on felony charges related to animal cruelty and dogfighting back in 2007, was extended an invitation to model for the magazine in exchange for a $1 million donation to PETA, the world-renowned animal rights organization.

"I sent the request to Michael Vick on Wednesday. But we haven’t heard back yet. I figured he paid back society for dogfighting, but what about the animals?" a spokesperson for Playgirl told Life & Style. "This way he could donate a large sum to PETA and all he’d have to do is pose for the magazine! It’s kind of a win-win situation." source

This week the major corporate advertisers were just not present and a second or third string round up of advertisers were cycled by BET in between the shows breaks.  Most of the advertising was for BET shows or for Public announcement spots.  Three upcoming major motion picture releases were the largest ads present, followed by an advertisement by Dell.com.  You can see the full list below, which is likely representative of a rapidly dwindling amount of ad revenue for this show.  I have not heard what the viewership numbers might be this second episode, but the network can’t be making much if anything off this show in its second week.

One comment by Michael Vick stuck out in this episode

Michael Vick blamed his bankruptcy on a financial advisor who ‘did not do the right thing.’  

I have to admit that made me laugh in disgust a bit, as one more example of Michael Vick not really taking responsibility for his own actions.

There were extremely few references to dog fighting in this episode.  They did show what I believe is the first speech Michael Vick gave to a junior high in Philadelphia, where he walked on stage crossing the stage in front of a DJ to an audience of cheering kids.  Not exactly the type of introduction you would expect for an ex felon who killed dogs with his bare hands and was coming to talk to kids at risk of following in his foot steps. (actually the last thing I would hope for for any kids)  Michael Vick is comfortable on camera in the one on one asides, but he has a long long way to go before he will become an effective public speaker, he got by on his celebrity and fame and the message if he had one never really made it out anywhere.

Advertisements on Vick Project week of 2-16-2010

• Movie – Shutter Island with Leonardo Decaprio
• BET TV Shows
• Rap-it-up – Public spot, multiple spots
• Dear World – Public Spot Girls Inc. Spot
• Dell.com
• Movie – Green Zone with Matt Damon
• Centric Network
• Heart Disease awareness for African American women public spot ahealthybet.com
• TaxAct.com  (not sure this might have been a local Cable Spot insertion over top of the BET broadcast)
• Movie – Brooklyn’s Finest Richard Geer, Ethan Hawk and Wesley Snipes
• Lysol
• GoodHairDVD.com Chris Rock DVD
• RuPaul Drag Race on Logo Channel

We had just updated the Sponsors to Protest Page here on the site, when we received this email with a much more comprehensive list of sponsors that are paying to advertise on the Michael Vick Project television show on BET.

We thought we’d HELP those sponsors get the idea of what their sponsorship brings to the world inserted between 10 hours of a choreographed make over of Michael Vick on TV.  Obviously if getting their ads in front of an extra 2.8 million people is so vital to them, we would like to offer some ad suggestions to help them get some more value for their ad dollar as they help finance Michael Vick’s PR Campaign…

Update 2-19-10 – The Footlocker ad has been removed from this article after we received word from one of our readers with a note from Footlocker stating:

"Generally, BET sells blocks of advertising time rather than media buys based on individual programs.  This means that Foot Locker does not choose the program that is showing when our commercial airs.  Please know that we would not intentionally advertise on programs that may be considered inappropriate or offensive to our consumers."

If their ads return to the Michael Vick Project we will be happy to return the ad for them.  In general, we would like advertisers to be aware of BET’s unsavory business practice of filling advertisers spots without telling them where their ads or ad dollars are going.  This does not mean that advertisers get a free pass.  Just like Michael Vick was responsible for spending his money from sponsors on killing dogs and running illegal dog fighting rings, advertisers are responsible to insure that their brand and spots and ad money are not used to promote shows that would harm that brand or society.  If they place a blind order of advertising and do not put controls on that order then any violent felon might be promoted onto a soap box and benefit financially for their crimes as would seem to be the case for Michael Vick on the Michael Vick Project.

Update – Several readers have indicated that Applebees has notified them via email that Applebees did not specifically seek to advertise on the Michael Vick Project on BET.  We have not been able to independently confirm that ourselves with Applebees, we have not found any press releases from Applebees on Michael Vick or the Michael Vick Project nor any other messages from Applebees.  We have not been able to confirm BET’s advertising practices, but in some of these cases it would appear that BET sort of dumped advertisers spots between breaks in the show when the advertisers did not specifically ‘prohibit their ads from running and funding the Michael Vick Project’.  This would not appear to be a good business practice by BET, but at the same time, advertisers must watch how their funds are spent and where the money goes.  As we learn more on this and other Michael Vick Project advertisers we will continue to keep you posted.

Update 2/19/10 – Some of our readers have been told by Sprint that they have pulled their advertising for the Michael Vick Project.  Again this would seem to be a situation where BET placed Sprint ads in spots on the Michael Vick Project without Sprint knowing that the ads would be there, and Sprint failed to follow up and see where their ads were placed and if the placement was appropriate.  We don’t have official confirmation from Sprint on this yet via a Press Release or other public statement but will keep our eye open.  If you see such a public statement please leave us a comment with details and a location.

Dave and Busters Ad Removed 2/16

Here’s a copy of the email.

Dear Friends,
Please e-mail the sponsors of the Michael Vick Reality Show and express your
opposition to their financial support of the program. As a result of their
advertising, Vick is profiting from a lucrative reality television contract.

This show is beyond the pale of depravity and must be canceled. Please also
stop buying these companies’ products immediately and tell your friends and
family to do the same. Of all the shows on television, these corporations
made a decision to support Michael Vick.

KFC
http://www.kfc.com/contact/

Buick
http://www.buick.com/pages/mds/helpcenter/contactUs.do

Bally Fitness
http://www.ballyfitness.com

PLEASE DO NOT SEE THE FOLLOWING MOVIES WHO ADVERTISED DURING THE SHOW:

• From Paris with Love
• Shudder Island
• The Crazies

Hershey’s
https://www.hersheys.com/contactus/contact-us-date.asp

Footlocker
http://www.footlocker.com/customerservice

Chevy
http://www.chevrolet.com/pages/mds/helpcenter/contactUs.do

CHEVY HAS EXPRESSED THEIR FULL SUPPORT FOR MICHAEL VICK’S SHOW. PLEASE
CONTINUE TO E-MAIL THEM UNTIL THEY GET THE MESSAGE.

Applebee’s
http://www.applebees.com/GuestContact.aspx

Sprint
http://www.sprint.com/index.html

SPRINT HAS EXPRESSED THEIR FULL SUPPORT FOR MICHAEL VICK’S SHOW. PLEASE
CONTINUE TO E-MAIL THEM UNTIL THEY GET THE MESSAGE.
Broadview Security (formerly Brinks Security)
http://www.broadviewsecurity-business.com/contactform.htm

Dave and Buster’s
http://www.daveandbusters.com

Dave & Buster’s World Headquarters
2481 Manana Drive
Dallas, TX 75220
214-357-9588

Please also contact BET and tell them what you think of the show:
https://bet.wufoo.com/forms/contact-us-betcom-management/

Sponsors that STOPPED Advertising on the Michael Vick Project television show due to caring people like yourself

2/15/10 Update: Dave and Busters announced on Twitter that they run general advertising on BET and had tightened their advertising guidelines to exclude the Michael Vick Project.  We have been unable to find any official Press Release and are relying on their twitter update on this issue.

2/4/10 Update: Nivea ended their commercial sponsorship of the show after
being inundated with customer e-mails complaining about their support of the
program.

2/5/10 Update: Pizza Hut issued a press release informing the public that
they asked BET to end their commercial support of the show.

2/5/10 Update: Denny’s Restaurant contacted BET and ended their support
after receiving e-mails from concerned customers expressing their opposition
to the show.

2/6/10 Update: L’Oreal issued a press release that they have terminated
their support of the Michael Vick "Reality" Show and apologized for
offending L’Oreal customers.

2/8/10 Update: Nationwide Insurance issued a press release announcing that
they asked BET to pull their ads from the Michael Vick Reality Show and that
they do not support the program and do not wish to have any association with
it.

(I will DVR the next episode and FF to the commercials to confirm these
advertisers’ commitments and identify any new advertisers who may have
filled their shoes.)

If Vick hadn’t killed dogs, he would never have this show. He’s making money
off his killing spree. He recently said the reason for the show is to clear
his family name. He also said that he will not speak about dog fighting
anymore after the show. When Vick said he was going to dedicate his life to
speaking out against dog fighting, apparently he meant he would do it twice
per month for a year until people forgot about it and it was safe for him to
be rich and famous again and profit from his crimes. He did a masterful job
of using the HSUS to help him re-enter society. He was never sincere. He
still thinks he’s a victim as evidenced by his arrogant and callous remarks
after being nominated for the Ed Block Courage Award:

"I’ve overcome a lot, more than probably one single individual can handle or
bear," Vick said. "You ask certain people to walk through my shoes, they
probably couldn’t do. Probably 95 percent of the people in this world
because nobody had to endure what I’ve been through, situations I’ve been
put in…"

Some people argue "everyone deserves a second chance…it’s time to move on"
and "everyone makes mistakes". Vick did not make a mistake; it was a
conscious and calculated decision that he knew was wrong. He is diabolical,
transparent, and evil. There is no cure for evil. He doesn’t deserve a
second chance for his heinous and unspeakable crimes against animals. Those
of us who speak for animals will not "move on" as Vick is emblematic of a
larger problem in a society that shows disregard for the welfare of animals
and believes lenient sentences and fines equate to justice. They do not.
If people want to idolize this sadistic killer, cheer for him from the
stands and wear his jersey, they can do it. We draw the line with a reality
show that allows him to profit from his felonies. Let us send a clear
message — if you brutalize helpless animals, you will not be accepted back
into society and return to fame and wealth without opposition. Our silence
allows the opposite message to be sent. Complacency breeds acceptance.
Acceptance leads to continued violence against animals. We do not have to
accept things as they are and we will not.

Please help us send a message to the shameless sponsors of this show that we
will boycott their products until they end their support of the program.

Thank you.

On behalf of the dogs Michael Vick fought, kicked, shot, hung, electrocuted,
drowned, and tortured.