The Branding and Deification of Lebron James

Peter McCabe

It is the purpose of this essay to examine the fidelity between popular
culture and religion through a close examination of a television
commercial for Nike advertising basketball player Lebron James. The
advertisement being analyzed is a one-minute long commercial,
which consists of individuals giving testament to Lebron’s greatness.
Stylistically the commercial is filmed in black and white and cut
together using short shots of the community of Lebron’s followers
describing his greatness and testifying to his importance as an
athlete. Arguably, the testimonies in this commercial are used as a
tool to deify Lebron and use his status as a basketball player to serve
religious functions in society. For example, the second speaker in the
commercial states “It looked like somebody built him. The creator
said, use these legs, put on these arms….” Immediately Lebron James
is established as a Christ figure whose talent as a basketball player
calls for consumers to “witness” his greatness. The insinuation is that
Lebron is a modern day Christ built by God to play basketball and
inspire the masses. This deification of Lebron makes the brand
experience of purchasing Nike apparel or “bearing witness” an action
that is supposedly spiritually fulfilling. Often marketed as The Chosen
One, Nike has developed Lebron James into someone that people of all
socio-economic statuses can find hope in and gather around. I intend
to analyze how it is that society has reached a point wherein an
athlete can become an individual whom a community rallies around
and finds salvation in, in the same manner that has traditionally
belonged to Christ in Western religious tradition.

Who is Lebron James? Well to begin, he is a twenty-five year-old
native of Akron, Ohio who stands six feet eight inches tall and weighs
roughly two hundred and fifty pounds. He is currently in his sixth
season in the National Basketball Association and is generally
considered the best basketball player in the world. He is known for his
dominating style of play and his ability to electrify audiences with his
physicality. In 2003 as an 18 year old, James signed a deal with athletic
apparel megalith Nike worth a reported 90 million dollars US. Lebron
James’ gifts as a player make him noticeable on the court yet the
marketing of Nike has attempted to have him transcend the sport of
basketball.

To begin, I will demonstrate the characteristics of Lebron James’s
marketing campaign that show he is specifically being marketed as a
Christ figure. Mark D. Stucky outlines a number of key characteristics
of a Christ figure.1 Four in particular apply to the way in which Lebron
James is marketed. To Stucky, a Christ figure is an individual with the
ability to gather and lead a group of disciples (Journal of Religion and
Popular culture). The commercial being analyzed demonstrates that
displaying this characteristic is a key goal of this marketing
campaign. The advertisement ends with a vast group of individuals of
differing genders, ages and ethnicities testifying that “are witnesses.”
Lebron’s greatness as a basketball player is utilized by Nike to
transcend the sports itself and associate a religious message with an
athlete. This commercial also highlights Lebron James’s distinctive
image, yet another characteristic of a Christ figure according to
Stucky. Numerous references are made to James’ remarkable height,
impressive stature and even his “rock solid body”.

In Shopping for Jesus, Faith Marketing in the USA, author Jennifer Lee
discusses the importance of connecting with the religious (specifically
Christian) demographic in America. She states, “Within America, the
religious-right movement, which presents one conservative view of
Christianity, has grown immense and influential… The religious right
has, inadvertently, helped popularize the use of religion as a sales
tactic for both politicians and products.2 It is obvious that with the
explosion of 24-hour news cycles and social media in popular culture
that image plays an increasingly important role in marketability. One
need look no further than the implosion of golfer Tiger Woods in the
last year for empirical evidence of this. That being said, who better to
correlate a brand with than Christ particularly in the United States?
Stucky continues to highlight the characteristics of a Christ figure by
stating that a Christ figure is someone who demonstrates
extraordinary powers. The extraordinary ability to play basketball is
not necessarily Christ like however it is branded as such by Nike. In
the Bible’s book of Luke 2:39-52, the extraordinary abilities of Jesus in
his youth are discussed. Jesus was able to insightfully discuss
scripture with men far before he had reached adulthood. In a similar
way, this advertisement provides the testimony from an individual
who witnessed Lebron’s proficiency at shooting half court shots as an
eight year old again trying to demonstrate his extraordinary abilities.
Lastly, according to Stucky, a Christ figure is an individual who is
capable of generating awe and wonder. Awe is a prevalent theme in
this commercial with nearly every ‘witness’ paying homage to James’
incredible skill. There can be little doubt that Lebron James is
marketed by Nike as a Christ figure but what does this tell us about
the fidelity between religion and popular culture in western society?

Author Gordon Lynch discusses the relationship between religion
and popular culture and provides approaches to the exploration and
critique of popular culture from a religious perspective. Gordon
Lynch’s second approach to popular culture provides and impetus for
the analyis of Lebron in terms of the relationship between religion
and popular culture. Lynch’s second approach outlines the
importance of, “The study of the ways in which popular culture may
serve religious functions in contemporary society.”3 Lebron James
serves the religious functions of being socially cohesive and providing
psychological repose to his ‘followers’ much as being a member of a
church congregation would do the same. Garry Crawford discusses
the psychological benefits of being a sports fan. He states,
The key psychological benefit of being a sport fan is that this
can serve as a buffer against depression and alienation, whilst
also increasing both self-esteem and group esteem. This is
achieved via certain psychological techniques such as basking
in the reflected glory of a successful team, club or performer.4
Indeed, there is a clear link between the characteristics of sports
fandom and religiosity. The idea of group esteem is central to the
creation of strong church communities in the Christian faith tradition
as well. Understandably then, Lebron James is marketed in a way so as
to harness these same positive feelings. By developing his image as a
Christ figure, Nike is replacing the societal benefits of religion with
their brand. This commoditization of faith is explicit in advertisement
analyzed here. The concept of ‘bearing witness’ has distinct religious
undertones and is entrenched in this marketing campaign. In the
bible verse presented at the outset of this document, Jesus’ calls those
who are ‘of the truth’ to bear witness to him as king. Similarily,
consumers are called by Nike to Witness the greatness of ‘King James’
(one of Lebron’s most popular epithets some others include: The
Chosen One). The religious undertones of the Lebron James’ Nike
campaign are hardly veiled. One needs look no further than the
monstrous banner placed in downtown Cleveland for evidence of this.
Based on Lynch’s second approach, the goal of Nike in this
campaign is obviously to have Lebron serve a religious function in
society. In this campaign, Nike refers to him as ‘King James’ creating a
distinct correlation between him and Jesus know to Christians as a
king. As well, consumers are called to bear witness by buying his
products. Even the image emblazoned on the banner above is
distinctly religious given its similarities to Jesus on the cross.
What conditions lead to a society where an athlete can so
obviously usurp the role of Christ mainly through advertising? It is
clear that through clever marketing, Nike is attempting to fulfill the
spiritual needs of its consumers by calling them to bear witness
however sneakers do not provide salvation. Author James G. Hutton
explores the re-branding of God to fit today’s consumer society. He
surmises that faith and marketing have a symbiotic relationship
meaning that people want their faith experience to match their
consumer lifestyles. Under this principle, it would seem that Nike is
trying to captivate the religious audience as well as provide spiritual
fulfillment through their products. I would argue that this predicates
the destruction of faith altogether. Under this model, the goal of faith
is not spiritual fulfillment or enlightenment but rather a desire by
consumers to be opiated and detached from reality. This theme is
addressed in Chuck Palahniuk’s book Survivor which is analyzed much
to the same conclusion by Jennifer Lee. Lee discusses the concept of
‘learned helplessness,’ which I believe accurately displays the
conditions that have lead to the deification of a basketball player. She
gives an example of a prayer from Survivor that accurately displays
this concept. Lee states,
The prayer to stop smoking is exemplary of what Palahniuk
terms ‘the learned helplessness’ that is pervasive in much of
American culture: ‘Our most Holy Father, Take from me the
choice You have given. Assume control of my will and habits.
Wrest from me power over my behavior. May it be Your
decision how I act. May it be by Your hands, my every failing.
Then if I still smoke, may I accept that my smoking is Your
will.’ Those who recite this prayer have abandoned any
personal accountability for their lives.5
Nike realizes and exploits the American love-affair with personal
saviors and thus are able to have a basketball player fulfill religious
roles in society.

In essence, Lebron James has been cleverly marketed to fulfill a
spiritual role in western society. This campaign has been effective
based on the ability of his advertisements to demonstrate his Christlike
characteristics and appeal to a growingly influential American
Christian consumer base. The Lebron James witness campaign
demonstrates the ability of popular culture to serve pseudo-religious
roles in society. Pair this with the American desire to be opiated by a
savior and you have a society willing to trade the sandals of Christ for
$200 sneakers.