Did Charles Barkley really call Weight Watchers a big scam? Yes he did. Apparently unaware that his mic was on during what they thought was a commercial break, the former "Round Mound of Rebound" let loose with a criticism of Weight Watchers. Why the big deal? This is America, right? He should be able to share his opinion on whatever he wants, right? Yes..... but... (yes there is a but, a big but). But what?
Wait for it.
Sir Charles is a paid spokesman for Weight Watchers. He is the face telling us to "Lose Like a Man" in the new Weight Watchers ad campaign. Interestingly, another thing he said during the break was "I ain't giving away no free money." Since the folks at Weight Watchers are paying him handsomely for his endorsement of their product, one wonders whether they might decide to quit handing out that 'free money' to someone who calls them a scam. Only time will tell.
More important, however, than whether the weight-loss giant decides to dump one of their spokespersons, is what Mr. Barkley meant by what he said. Obesity is a national epidemic in America. Barkley has a well-earned reputation as a guy who will tell you what he is thinking, political or social correctness be damned.
That being the case, should we take Barkley to task for sharing his feelings about a product he is paid to endorse? Or should we applaud him for "telling it like it is?" Is the weight loss INDUSTRY too profitable for them to actually want people to lose weight? I mean, sure, a little... but not enough that they go off the plan. Right?
Chances are good that this video might be deleted soon, as the big money interests of the NBA, TNT, and Weight Watchers aggressively try to bury this. Several other YouTube videos of the broadcast have been removed at the request of the NBA. Clicking the videos gets the following response:
"Barkley on Weight Watch..."
This video is no longer available due to a copyright claim by National Basketball Association.
This is quite amazing since a simple Google video search for the NBA comes up with more than 43 MILLION postings. Why aren't all those videos being taken down? Food for thought.
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