Heroes and Villains

When Brandy Chastain ripped off her jersey after scoring the winning penalty kick in the 1999 World Cup, a hero was born. When Jessica Lynch was ambushed in Iraq, one nearly died. Will Madison Avenue turn Jessica —or any of the dozens of brave souls forged in the crucible of war —into a celebrity spokeshero?In World War II, many notable Hollywood celebrities joined the fight. Jimmy Stewart flew bombing missions and was highly decorated. Clark Gable, Mickey Rooney and dozens of other movie stars put their careers on hold and their lives on the line. Today, instead of Hollywood helping to supply the war effort, I'm afraid the war effort is going to supply Hollywood. Until a few weeks ago, we hadn't fought a war we could watch in real time. Vietnam was too long ago, and the first Gulf War was quick and clean. Although there were dramatic acts of heroism, there were no embedded reporters to bring the central characters into our living rooms. The first Gulf War, however, did give birth to the celebrity TV journalist. Peter Arnett, the courageous sage. Arthur Kent, the Scud stud. Bernard Shaw, the stoic anchor. They were the link to our troops, the familiar faces we believed in, related to and welcomed into our homes. This confluence of substantial events, new technologies and big personalities turned CNN from a struggling sideshow into a major news network virtually overnight. In this latest war, Arnett made his curtain call, and new star journalists took the stage, from Shepard Smith to Richard Engel. And in the age of celebrity embedded reporters, the soldier spokeshero is just a few steps away. Using spokespeople in advertising is about borrowing equity. Nike shoes are better because Michael Jordan wears them. Wheaties are good because Barry Bonds eats them. The credibility, the affection for and the equity of the celebrity rub off on the product, or so the theory goes. But now, more than ever, we must distinguish between "celebrity" and "hero." A celebrity endorser raises the stature of a product. A hero endorser only diminishes the stature of the hero. Charles Barkley is notorious for insisting that he is not a role model. The fact that his public persona has a powerful impact on children makes his claim debatable, but at the core he's right. He's not a role model, not a hero, not someone who should be revered. He's an athlete and an entertainer. He sells his performance in the same way Procter & Gamble sells Tide (albeit in a more exciting way). As a professional, his fame is based on selling an image of himself, and it's not a big stretch for him to sell something else—be it footwear, clothing or barbecue grills. The same goes for any athlete or movie star.The same cannot be said of a hero. A hero doesn't become a hero by selling. A hero becomes a hero by serving. In past wars, such heroes received the Congressional Medal of Honor or the Purple Heart, and perhaps a write-up in the newspaper. If their deeds were truly transcendent, we read about them in our history books. TV cameras and top-dollar endorsements did not exist. Agents were not waiting in the wings to turn them into celebrities. I can hear the justification now. An advertiser will sign a military hero to sell soda or pizza and say, "We need more young people like Sergeant Smith" or "Private Jones has suffered enough; let him have his just reward." But a soldier's heroism doesn't just belong to the soldier. It belongs to the country and to all of us as human beings who dream of rising to the challenge, wondering if we too could selflessly summon the courage to be a hero. True heroism is an ideal, and to commercialize an ideal is profane. Let's put Jessica Lynch and heroes like her in the history books, not in the pages of Vogue. My kids already think "Start Me Up" is only a Microsoft jingle; I'd rather they not remember Jessica's rehabilitation as being brought to us by Nike. Celebrity can be bought and sold. Heroism must be earned.

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Heroes and Villains

Steve Mckee, President Of Mckee Wallwork Henderson In Albuquerque, N.m.

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Steve Mckee, President Of Mckee Wallwork Henderson In Albuquerque, N.m.