A.J. Brown #11 of the Philadelphia Eagles runs through the tunnel prior to the NFC Championship NFL … [+] football game against the San Francisco 49ers. (Photo by Kevin Sabitus/Getty Images)
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AJ Brown is a wide receiver for the NFL’s Philadelphia Eagles—and he just went viral for an unusual reason for a footballer: reading a book on the sidelines. During a Wild Card game against the Green Bay Packers, cameras caught Brown reading something called Inner Excellence in the dugouts:
Unsurprisingly, the internet went wild for this video, but in a different way than you may expect. While many would expect the online world to be negative and vitriolic about AJ Brown reading on the sidelines, the main reactions have been far closer to surprise, awe, and wonder.
Before we get there, though, let’s take a step back.
What Happened With AJ Brown? And What Book Was He Reading?
After the Eagles beat the Packers, journalists interviewed AJ Brown in the locker room about why he was reading. He responded, saying that it helps him “refocus” and prepare for the rest of the game.
The book in question is called Inner Excellence and is written by Jim Murphy. It’s about training the mind to achieve high performance, and, according to journalists, is a text that Brown is dedicated to:
How Has The Internet Reacted To AJ Brown Reading ‘Inner Excellence?’
There have been a deluge of jokey comments and memes regarding the event. Here’s one drawing attention to the nature of wide receivers:
Another commenting on the striking visuals of AJ Brown’s actions:
And some pointing to the memes that have sprung up around Inner Excellence’s Amazon page:
This isn’t to say that some people haven’t been negative online, it’s simply that there are a deluge of comments that are positive about the Philadelphia Eagles’ AJ Brown reading on the sideline.
Far more than you may expect—so why is that?
What Does The Positive Reaction to AJ Brown Reading During an NFL Game Mean?
Something that sums up this story and the internet’s role in it is how people have subjected Jim Murphy’s Inner Excellence on Amazon with positive reviews, pushing the rating from 4.4 to 4.7 at the time of writing.
What’s happening is there’s an outpouring of affection around AJ Brown, which is broadly unusual in these circumstances.
More often that not, when someone—and especially an athlete—stands out from the crowd, the online reaction is one of pure mockery.
A prime example was Cam Newton. He wore a babushka-style headscarf and there were a deluge of negative comments about the quarterback. It would’ve been logical to expect the same thing happening with AJ Brown reading Inner Excellence.
Yet, it hasn’t.
One explanation is that reading is looked upon more favorably than fashion, but that hasn’t stopped intellectually- and politically-minded players like Colin Kaepernick being attacked online.
Instead, there’s something to be said for social media momentum and the power of networks when looking at how people react online.
Scientific American published research showing that what pushes people to extreme views—both positive and negative—are influencers. Because these accounts with lots of followers have a huge number of connections, they can exert large levels of control over how other people think of an event. They post and, because so many people view and interact with that comment, it becomes the prevalent trend or opinion.
In this instance, large accounts can react positively to AJ Brown reading Inner Excellence on the sidelines, and that view spreads across the online world. The general reaction is one of gentle amusement and respect, rather than anger and bitterness.
Of course, this often happens in reverse, and negativity can spread across the internet, making life hard for all those involved.
Thankfully, this isn’t the case now. The reaction to AJ Brown reading Inner Excellence has been one of positivity, and, in these instances, it’s pleasant to just sit back and admire the optimism spreading across the internet.
