Remembering Kobe Bryant

Like many athletes, Kobe Bryant had a second act outside of sports. On top of being one of the great basketball players to ever live, Bryant was married with four daughters, a youth basketball coach and a creative.

Bryant had a unique connection to what we cover—he dabbled in advertising as a spokesperson, copy writer and creative director. When Bryant bought a large stake in BODYARMOR Sports Drink, he served as the creative director for the brand's first campaign in 2015. During an interview with Darren Rovell, Bryant revealed he was the writer of a 2009 ad that creative agency Zambezi created for vitaminwater. For the Players Tribune, Bryant penned a poem called Dear Basketball, which he would later win an Oscar for after turning the poem into a short film. Bryant, who was 41, aimed to dominate the boardroom like he did the basketball court for more than three decades.

Read more: Bryant, as the "Black Mamba" was a legendary spokesperson for the NBA, Nike and more that turned him into a global icon.

Last year, Olay broke into the Super Bowl with a 30-second horror film starring Sarah Michelle Gellar. Olay enter the Big Game knowing 45% of NFL fans are women, but advertisers rarely cater to them in the Super Bowl. Just 27% of ads in the game even feature women. This year, Olay is back and doubling down on its approach. The brand tapped stars like Busy Philipps, Lilly Singh, Katie Couric, Taraji P. Henson and astronaut Nicole Stott for a space-themed ad that would benefit Girls Who Code. Additionally, two-thirds of the people who worked on the ad were women.

Read more: In this week's Adweek cover story, deputy brands editor Diana Pearl spent time on Olay's set learning the story of how this star-studded ad that empowers women came together.

More Super Bowl ad news:

In addition to developing creative that will wow 100 million viewers, brands also face a number of critical questions when trying to determine when to air their ads. Early in the game or late? Is halftime the right opportunity? Should the ad be in a fixed break like the two-minute warning or a floater pod like after a touchdown? Should the brand negotiate for an A-position or a Z-position? Navigating those obstacles can make or break an ad. After all, nobody wants to follow an ad featuring a dead child (looking at you, Nationwide) or risk landing in the fourth quarter of a blowout.

Read more: In this week's magazine, TV editor Jason Lynch spoke to a number of experts and media buyers about how to nail that ad placement.

Related: Fox Sports Adds an Extra Super Bowl Ad Pod 2 Months After Selling Out Inventory

You probably never thought you'd be reading about IHOb and Mr. Peanut in the same sentence, but here we are. How did we get here? Well, both IHOP and Planters managed to do something few brands can ever achieve: pull off a stunt so outrageous that you dominate the conversation on the internet. IHOP's brilliant IHOb stunt had America speculating about the future of the chain for weeks. Now, Planters has already monopolized the Super Bowl conversation more than a week before the game by announcing the death of its iconic mascot, Mr. Peanut.

Read more: Creativity editor David Griner explains what every marketer should learn from two wildly successful stunts.

Best of the Rest: Today's Top News and Insights

CMO John Sheldon joins Challenger Brands, Mar. 4-5 in New York City, to share effective strategies in the addressable tv space and how SmileDirectClub is “getting it right”. Passes are running out and prices increase tomorrow–secure yours before it’s too late!

We asked agencies and brands about their parental leave policies. Here's what a few said:

The Media Kitchen

All parents get 12 weeks of paid leave, with an optional additional 12 weeks unpaid. Upon your return to work we have a really nice re-entry into work with a program called "returnship", which allows new parents to transition back to work, with a phased in-office and work from home schedule. You are allowed to work from home 50% of the time for your first 8 weeks back to work, and then 25% of the time for the following 10 weeks. This gives new parents a way to transition back into working life, easing the process for all involved!

Kaitlin Doering, Associate HR Director, MUH-TAY-ZIK / HOF-FER

Our maternity leave policy is 12 weeks fully paid, plus additional weeks paid 100% per each year of tenure, capping at 6 extra weeks. Our paternity leave policy is 6 weeks fully paid.

Meike Jordan, Head of Human Resources, Productsup

Ensuring our employees feel fulfilled professionally and personally is a big part of our company culture, so we've created a parental leave policy that provides flexibility for both mothers and fathers at Productsup. Before pregnancy, female employees in our Berlin office receive six paid weeks off. After the birth of a child, they receive eight paid weeks off, which can be shared with fathers.

The most talked about topics and teams on social media.

It’s cheaper and still has a payoff.

Products can be marketed in a way that alleviates potential political tensions.

All the coverage you'll need for the annual brand bacchanal.

Record producer will curate events and playlists for a yearlong campaign.