The easiest prediction in television history may be — The Masters will break all sorts of golf ratings records this weekend.
Not because interest in golf has suddenly soared. Not because CBS will do such a spectacular job of producing the tournament.
Because, of course, Tiger Woods is competing.
Well, that's not true. Because Tiger Woods is a philanderer. Because we live in a world where scandal sells.
That's not a good thing, but it's a thing. Indisputably.
And what it says about America in 2010 isn't good.
JUST CREEPY: Just when you thought the whole Tiger Woods thing couldn't get any weirder, we get the first post-scandal TV commercial featuring the disgraced golfer.
If you haven't seen it, you haven't had ESPN on in the past couple of days. It was playing at seemingly every commercial break.
The black-and-white commercial features a stone-faced Woods staring into the camera as we hear the voice of his father, who died in 2006:
"Tiger? I am more prone to be inquisitive. To promote discussion. I want to find out what your thinking was. I want to find out what your feelings are. And did you learn anything?"
And then we see the Nike swoosh.
Some advertising "experts" are praising the spot — calling it "brilliant."
I, on the other hand, have a one-word reaction of my own:
Creepy.
And not just because Woods and Nike are using his late father to try to justify his return to the world of advertising.
It's cold, manipulative and insulting to the intelligence of everyone who sees it.
If it's supposed to make us believe Woods is deeply repentant, it fails. Using the words of your dead father to boost your image and your sponsor's sales doesn't exactly convey contrition.
It's a coldly calculated play to revive Woods' earning power.
Woods' pre-scandal Nike ads never prompted me to buy Nike products. His post-scandal ad, however, makes me less likely to do so.
ONE SHINING MOMENT? CBS made a big deal about getting Jennifer Hudson to sing this year's version of "One Shining Moment," which accompanies the montage after the NCAA men's basketball title game.
It's become a tradition. And, as tends to happen, there's carping about what clips are and what clips aren't included in the montage.
This year, there were complaints about Hudson's version of the song itself. I'm not a music critic, but those complaints seem unnecessary.
However, did we really need to see five clips of Hudson singing in the three-minute montage? How many shining moments did she have during the tournament?
Wasn't this supposed to be about the players, coaches and fans?
e-mail: pierce@desnews.com