Professional athletes are part-time athletes.  Their other job is to be paid endorsers.  Clothing, pain relievers, and food.

Since professional athletes are rational, they will accept money to endorse products that increase their net worth.  Even if it means endorsing products that are detrimental to society.

But if there is a stigma about endorsing products that are detrimental to society, perhaps the more prudent financial decision will be to endorse products that are more beneficial to society.

Looks like one stigma, professional athletes endorsing junk food, may be ready to drive social change.  Or at the very least, make endorsing junk food a poor financial decision for professional athletes.

Reputation is precious.  Threatening it, and the ability for a rich athlete to get more rich, is powerful.

I cannot wait to see Lebron dropping McDonalds.  Peyton dropping Papa Johns.  Serena dropping Gatorade.

And for the record, this grassroots-awareness-resulting-in-stigma-for-celebtrity-endorsers thing transcends junk food.  How can we use it more?