Love Hurts and truth sells: Missouri School of Journalism alum offers students a peek into Nike’s advertising strategy
COLUMBIA, Mo. (Oct. 23, 2025) — This week, Missouri School of Journalism students got a behind-the-scenes look at one of the most coveted accounts in the advertising industry.
Paanii Annan, BJ ’14, brand director for Nike and Jordan Brand at storied advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy, met with strategic communication students in a variety of classes and student organizations Monday during his visit to campus.
In Professor Jamie Flink’s strategic communication management course, Annan delved into the creative process behind promoting the products and athletes associated with Nike — a process he described as rooted in simplicity and honesty at a time when authenticity in advertising draws stronger audience engagement than content perceived as highly produced or inauthentic.
As an example, he pointed to Nike’s efforts to establish firmer footing in the running shoe market.
“When we started looking [at competitors], we saw that the industry was selling a joyful running fantasy,” Annan said. “‘You’ll feel like you’re running on clouds.’ Well, that works, but is it the truth? In a category selling lies, the most differentiating thing Nike can do is tell the truth.”
Another example came from the world of professional football, when Philadelphia Eagles quarterback and Jordan Brand partner Jalen Hurts led his team to a Super Bowl win in February. Responding quickly, Annan’s team put together the “Love, Hurts” campaign, which drew on Philadelphia’s iconic LOVE sculpture and “brotherly love” motto to create feel-good moments for the city, the team and the brand.
The campaign was a strong example of what Annan described as an emphasis on genuine passion and community connection that permeates Nike’s eleven offices throughout the U.S. and around the world. That’s more than corporate strategy; it’s personal for Annan, who discovered during his junior year at the School of Journalism how important it is to believe in your work.
“I was lucky enough to get an internship at Leo Burnett in Chicago my junior year, and I worked on two brands I never thought I’d be interested in,” he said, referring to a parmesan cheese brand and an investment company. “I worked on that and was like, is this what I want to do?”
“When we started looking [at competitors], we saw that the industry was selling a joyful running fantasy. ‘You’ll feel like you’re running on clouds.’ Well, that works, but is it the truth? In a category selling lies, the most differentiating thing Nike can do is tell the truth.”
Paanii Annan
The hands-on experience — a classic example of the School of Journalism’s Missouri Method of learning by doing — helped him narrow his goal, which was to find his way to Wieden+Kennedy’s headquarters in Portland and to management of the Nike brand. After fewer than 5 years at Leo Burnett, that goal was realized.
His inspirational story also resonated with students in MOJO Ad, the School’s full-service ad agency specializing in the youth and young adult market. (Annan himself served as public relations account manager with MOJO Ad from 2013-2014, when he helped deliver campaigns for Walmart and Tostitos.)
For Flink and Jon Stemmle, co-directors of MOJO Ad, Annan’s return was more than a learning opportunity; it was a reunion between a student and his teachers.
“I can still remember where Paanii sat in Fisher Auditorium and conversations we had when he was a student,” Stemmle said. “So, to get to see him now with all he’s accomplished is just such a joy. It’s the reason we do what we do.”
Indeed, it wasn’t just Annan’s high-profile job that made him an ideal guest speaker. Flink said that the opportunity to hear from such a successful former student — just over a decade removed from his time at the School — was impactful in its own way.
“Seeing a former student return to campus as a successful professional is one of the most inspiring moments in university life, both for students and professors,” Flink said. “Nike represents the pinnacle in our industry, so his visit showed the students the path from class to career is real and full of possibility.”
The same was true of Annan’s additional visits to students in Mizzou’s chapters of the Public Relations Student Society of America and the National Association of Black Journalists, which brought to mind his advice to Flink’s students about making connections.
“If I don’t remember my interaction with you and understand how you approach account management in a way that’s different from someone else, you’re not going to stand out,” Annan said. “What special sauce are you going to bring to it?”
When it comes to Annan, who perfected his own sauce recipe at Mizzou, the proof is in the pudding.
Updated: October 23, 2025