Tiger Woods could face jail time for hiring hookers; sponsors are backing out

Late Friday evening, Tiger Woods made his second statement of this whole two-week-plus scandal involving the revelations of a dozen affairs with a dozen women – that we know about. Personally, I found the statement to be self-pitying, and I found the timing in particular cowardly. People only release statements like that on a Friday evening when they’re trying to bury it. It didn’t really work, though, because the whole media concept of “take out the trash Fridays” is moot with the 24-hour news cycle, with the Internet, and with the daily, if not hourly revelations of new scandals involving Tiger Woods.

So, with that being said, here’s part of this weekend’s newest scandals: Tiger’s biggest sponsors are beginning to either drop him, or distance themselves from him. This isn’t really breaking news – last week it was revealed that all of the commercials with Tiger had been put on an indefinite hiatus. Gatorade (whose corporate owner is Pepsi) was the first company to distance themselves from Tiger, and they’re now contemplating a complete severing of their partnership with Tiger. Now it’s like rats from a sinking ship. Here’s more:

Tiger Woods is facing an ugly split after a long and happy relationship – with his sponsors. Corporate giants AT&T and Gillette distanced themselves Saturday from the world’s best-known golfer/philanderer, raising questions about Woods’ multimillion-dollar advertising appeal.

Gillette announced it will cut back on Woods’ marketing role as the golfer focuses on his home life.

“As Tiger takes a break from the public eye, we will support his desire for privacy by limiting his role in our marketing programs,” said a statement from Gillette. The company once featured Woods plugging their razors with fellow sporting superstars Derek Jeter and Roger Federer.

AT&T, which signed a deal with Woods earlier this year to put its logo on his golf bag, is reconsidering its ties to the 33-year-old mega-star after his admission of marital infidelity.
After Woods announced Friday that he was indefinitely abandoning golf in the wake of his woes, AT&T issued a statement offering their backing – to a point.

“We support Tiger’s decision and our thoughts will be with him and his family,” said AT&T spokeswoman Susan Bean. “We are presently evaluating our ongoing relationship with him.” Woods’ ties to AT&T predate the golf bag deal.

The golfer with 14 major titles hosted its annual AT&T National tournament – which he won earlier this year. Other sponsors stood more firmly behind Woods, whose carefully sculpted image has unraveled in the two weeks since a car wreck outside his Florida mansion.

Nike, perhaps his most visible and ardent backer, said Woods and his family had their “full support.”

“He is the best golfer in the world and one of the greatest athletes of his era,” said the Nike statement. “We look forward to his return to golf.”

[From The New York Daily News]

So, yeah. That’s the money stuff. Some people find it dull, but I find the money stuff interesting. But I know what most people are interested in – the hookers/mistresses/whatever. Fox News claims that because “former madam” Michelle Braun discussed Tiger hiring hookers, it’s perfectly possible that Tiger Woods might be charged with “patronizing a prositiute” which is a misdemeanor in New York. Fox News asked lawyer Tom Kenniff (who does not represent Tiger) about the possibility: “He could be charged with patronizing a prostitute, a misdemeanor in New York. Depending on the statute of limitations, if there are witnesses swearing out statements, and there is a money trail that can be corroborated, it’s a reasonable likelihood” that Woods could be charged. The possible sentence? A year in jail, maybe. And the New York district attorney’s office is not confirming or denying whether there’s an on-going investigation, or whether charges are being considered. If Tiger does got charged, let’s see if Nike still sticks with him.

UPDATE: Accenture, the business/management firm has now dropped Tiger. The Wall Street Journall reports Accenture’s statement: “”After careful consideration and analysis, the company has determined that he is no longer the right representative for its advertising.” Accenture also announced that they will be doing an entirely new ad campaign without Tiger for 2010.

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