192 All News: Nike’s Kaepernick Ad Campaign, The Kavanaugh Hearings, and The White House “Insider”

Today we’re doing a news-only episode, talking about our thoughts and feelings around the recent Nike campaign featuring Colin Kaepernick, the Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court confirmation hearings, and the anonymous White House “insider” who posted an opinion piece in the New York Times last week.

In This Episode

We were too bummed out by this week’s (well, technically, last week’s) news to do a fun episode, so we decided to just talk about the news instead. Content warning for Trump, social justice issues, everything bad in the world. Don’t listen if you’re in a bad head space!

The three major news stories we cover with links to the articles we read:

Nike Ad

On September 3rd, former N.F.L. quarterback Colin Kaepernick became the face of Nike’s latest ad campaign celebrating the 30th anniversary of their “Just Do It” campaign, signing a new multiyear deal after being signed but not used by Nike since 2011.

We have mixed feelings about this campaign – on one hand, exposure for activists like Kaepernick is always a good thing, highlighting the work he’s done and the sacrifices he’s made in order to spread his message. On the other hand, we are, of course, wary when corporations profit off of anti-oppression movements, particularly when they exploit people of color to do so.

We break down the strategy behind Nike’s use of Kaepernick, why they are doing it now versus two years ago when his national anthem protests started, the scandals Nike is trying to distance itself from, Nike’s continued relationship to the N.F.L., Kaepernick’s collusion case against the N.F.L., and Trump’s thoughts about N.F.L. players taking a knee and the impact of this on coaches in the N.F.L.

Articles

* Nike Returns to Familiar Strategy With Kaepernick Ad Campaign | Sept 4, 2018 | NY Times

* Colin Kaepernick’s Nike Campaign Keeps N.F.L. Anthem Kneeling in Spotlight | Sept 3, 2018 | NY Times

* At Nike, Revolt Led by Women Leads to Exodus of Male Executives | April 28, 2018 | NY Times

* Ex-Employees Sue Nike, Alleging Gender Discrimination | August 10, 2018 | NY Times

* Colin Kaepernick’s Collusion Case Against the N.F.L. Will Advance | August 30, 2018 | NY Times

* Nike is facing a new wave of anti-sweatshop protests | August 1, 2017 | QZ

Kavanaugh Confirmation Hearings

Trump nominated Judge Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court on July 9, 2018, to fill the seat vacated by Justice Anthony Kennedy, who decided to retire seemingly out of nowhere. We are, like many U.S. citizens, terrified at the ramifications of Kavanaugh’s nearly guaranteed spot on the Supreme Court, not only because it will tip the scales in favor of a severely conservative court, but also because Kavanaugh is young and could potentially be ruling on case law for generations to come. As we see it, a seat on the Supreme Court is in many ways more powerful than the presidency itself and oh god why is the country burning down around us.

We get into the details around Justice Kennedy’s relationship to the two Supreme Court nominees that Trump has picked in his short one and a half year term as President,