Aaron Rodgers' Media-Exposure Train Rolls On With Hawaii Vacation
Name someone, anyone, who has received more media coverage than former Cal quarterback Aaron Rodgers the past few months.
President Biden? Maybe. But Joe Biden is busy running the country. Aaron Rodgers has not played a single game while the media reports on his every move.
Rodgers now has crossover appeal – being a big story in both the sports world and the pop-culture world as evidenced by the coverage of his Hawaii vacation.
“Today” proved the point that everyone now has interest in whatever Rodgers does when it reported Thursday on Rodgers’ Hawaii visit.
Something called the Aaron Rodgers Watch first reported the Hawaii news this week that Rodgers was in Hawaii with his actress fiancee Shailene Woodley. The only news was that Rodgers was present in Hawaii with Woodley, but that revelation, and a bunch of photos, were enough to have the gossipy entertainment/celebrity sites gung-ho on Rodgers.
Access Hollywood noted the following in its coverage of the Hawaii retreat: “Looks like the group also had a blast at the base of the cliff as they threw up their arms to wave to the camera while on the water.” Stop the presses.
The critical information that Rodgers is a Taylor Swift fans was also noted by Access Hollywood, and Hollywood News reported in its news video that Swift acknowledged Rodgers’ interest in her music.
Oh, by the way, we were informed by the videos that Rodgers and Woodley are “soul mates.”
The escalating fascination with Rodgers began moments after he had played his final game of the season, when Rodgers, the presumptive MVP, implied that he might not be with the Packers in 2021. The Rodgers’ media extravaganza continued when he won his third MVP, invoked the name of Jodie Foster and announced that he was engaged. It was presumed, and later confirmed, that his fiancée was Woodley, which flung Rodgers into the quicksand of the entertainment/celebrity world. (Woodley was appealing in "The Mauritanian." Good movie.)
Television sites got involved when Rodgers became a guest host on Jeopardy!, and the geek squad had their say when Rodgers said he’d like to be permanent host of the show for trivia nerds. Rodgers later appeared on the TV sitcom "The Conners."
All the while the mystery and controversy about Rodgers’ status with the Packers was brewing, and that issue hit the front burner when Rodgers let it be known he did not want to be with the Packers anymore. The reasons for Rodgers' dissatisfaction, whether he would be traded and what would happen if he is dealt became daily topics on sports pages. As noted in the video atop this story, gamblers are trying to guess whether Rodgers will be with the Packers this season as they place their bets.
Meanwhile, Rodgers said virtually nothing publicly, although his presence at the Kentucky Derby (with Woodley and friends) drew media coverage. His interview with Kenny Mayne on ESPN this week (evidently while Rodgers was in Hawaii) revealed nothing new but was still a hot topic.
Rodgers admitted he was not participating in the Packers’ voluntary Organized Team Activities this week, and it turns out he was lounging in Hawaii at the time.
And, oh yeah, it was announced this week that Rodgers will play in a made-for-TV golf event with Tom Brady, Phil Mickelson and Bryson DeChambeau.
And that golf event occurs amid a feud between DeChambeau and Brooks Koepka, which Rodgers responded to:
The question now is whether Rodgers is enjoying all this exposure. He has been extremely adept at shaping the narrative of his career, and recently he has done so with limited public commentary. Rodgers would not have let the photos of his Hawaii vacation become public if he wanted to keep the trip a secret. Instead it became sports and pop-culture news.
And the Aaron Rodgers’ media exposure train is not about the run out of fuel.
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Follow Jake Curtis of Cal Sports Report on Twitter: @jakecurtis53
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