This is a brilliant move, but one I think will eventually be chopped due to the enormous backlash that accompanies it.
The Hawks are all about profiting off of controversy, and have hired three Georgia natives, all named Ashley Madison, to promote the team’s new 10-game flex ticket plan.
The promotion, taking its cue from the affair website, urges fans to “Start a new love affair with the Hawks,” and the promo features the team’s mascot with its finger over its beak in a hushing pose.
“Everyone thought it was a good idea, which actually scared me,” Steve Koonin, the team’s chief marketing offer, told ESPN.com.
The team hired two women and a man to push the ticket packages.
The backlash will come because of the Hawks mocking extra-marital affairs in the wake of Ashley Madison’s database hack that revealed the identities of 37 million users.
At least five users committed suicide following the breach.
By Glenn Erby
