:thumbsup:
Matt Porter 3 hrs ago
"After attending the 2015 Arnold Classic I was left with some deep thoughts on the current state of Bodybuilding and the Fitness industry as a whole. This industry has dramatically changed in the last decade, but really made a HUGE leap in transformation in just the last 3 years due to prominent presence of social media--i.e. FaceBook, InstaGram, twitter, and YouTube. These outlets have made certain people (and I use these terms loosely) celebrities, icons, leaders, and individuals young people admire, look up to, and aspire to become.....Now I have no issues with people making a name for themselves and doing positive things to motivate others and be a role model to the masses etc... but when you can literally start a YouTube channel, and do something as idiotic and moronic as doing dangerous eating challenges risking health, or saying the "F word" over and over again, or thinking you know what all pro Bodybuilders "secretly" do and disclose incriminating information out to the public for the masses to think it's 100% gospel is mind numbing.
As I was walking down the Arnold expo I saw a gigantic line wrapped around the BPI booth, I look up and see the Hodge Twins pictures across the top of a banner. I then see a similar line for another YouTube celebrity known as the BroScience guy, same for CT Fletcher. That was pretty amazing to see, but what choked me up and pierced my heart was immediately after walking past those lines I see Ed Corney's little booth. I see an individual who is pretty much the centerpiece of Bodybuilding. Someone who had the body, brain, and commendable work ethic. I saw NO LINE, I saw no one interested in his historical albums on his table from the 1960's -1990's with candid pics of Arnold, Franco, Mentzer, you name it. I literally walked away choked up trying to comprehend what is going on in this current era.
Some of these Media Celebrities had bigger lines than some of the most respectful, polite, IFBB Pros in our current day state of Bodybuilding, with perhaps more lucrative sponsors or endorsements. I 100% understand it's all about what the masses want to see and hear for companies to spark interest in paying a person to represent their company. But its to the point now that a company doesn't seem to care whether person is negative, positive , moral, immoral, respectful, disrespectful etc... to be a leader or ambassador. That part is alarming, someone with an amazing resume of serving our country, achieving a Masters degree, having Doctorate, winning several overalls, and has a amazing build, great family life, and is extremely admirable will get overlooked for sponsorship over someone who has perhaps..."2 million followers." Ouch.....all those accolades and accomplishments mean nothing.
I am on a personal mission to spark positivity back into this industry without doing outlandish activities on camera, without using profanity every other sentence, and to give out the best, most honest information I can give, without compromising my integrity, morals and personal beliefs. I also ask fellow competitors and people with interest in bodybuilding to make conscious decisions on who you follow and look up to."
