The last two days have seen protests in both the UK and France during the ceremonial passage of the Olympic Flame. But whose brand will get most affected?
The one the protesters hope for is the China brand. Will it be badly enough affected by negative publicity to change the way in which the world views the Beijing Olympics? Does any of this rub off on current sponsors of the Beijing Olympics.
But there are other brands at stake here as well. There's the London 2012 Olympics and the impact on potential sponsors. Right now there are just two of eight possible sponsors signed up with clothing and homeware, sportswear, airline, automotive, telecoms, and oil and gas still available. The two committed sponsors are EDF and Lloyds TSB.
There's the British and French national brands which may be affected by their ability. Locally, the British police haven't come off too well. The friendly bobby reputation isn't helped by TV pictures of yellowjackets throwing people to the ground.
And what about the personal brand of Gordon Brown? Will his reputation for dithering be bolstered by his attitude towards Beijing? He greeted the torch in Fortress Downing Street, but refused to actually touch the torch, as pointed out by the TV commentary.
What does the Olympic flame stand for now? But haven't the protesters neglected history? The symbolic and memorable protests were the ones at the games by the participants. Jesse Owens walking away with a fistful of golds in the Aryan nation; black power salutes by American athletes in 1968. Who remembers that the torch relay was first instituted ahead of the 1936 Summer Games in Berlin by Hitler to bolster the links between Germany and Ancient Greece?
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