Commencement Speakers Nixed Because of Protests

Several universities have changed plans for commencement speakers, succumbing to student and faculty protests. In some cases, the speaker withdrew. Here are the latest and relevant communications:

• Former Chancellor at the University of California, Berkeley, Robert J. Birgeneau, has withdrawn as this year's speaker for Haverford College. A letter from students and a few faculty speaks of Haverford's "Quaker Values," including pacifism. It compliments Birgeneau's work on LGBT issues but criticizes his involvement in an event at Berkeley: "You supported UC Berkeley police in the use of extreme force against non-violent protestors..." Birgeneau did not appreciate the letter and the group's demands and responded with a missive of his own.

• Rutgers found a similar fate after announcing that Condoleeza Rice would speak at its commencement. Rice resigned, announcing the decision on her Facebook page.

• Christine Lagarde, president of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), withdrew her plans to speak at Smith College. Kathleen McCartney, president of the college, wrote a sharply worded letter about the protests, including these excerpts:

"Those who objected will be satisfied that their activism has had a desired effect. But at what cost to Smith College? This is a question I hope we will ponder as a community in the months ahead."

 . . . .

"I want to underscore this fact: An invitation to speak at a commencement is not an endorsement of all views or policies of an individual or the institution she or he leads. Such a test would preclude virtually anyone in public office or position of influence. Moreover, such a test would seem anathema to our core values of free thought and diversity of opinion. I remain committed to leading a college where differing views can be heard and debated with respect."

Discussion Starters:

• Read all of the communications associated with these decisions. What themes emerge in tone, organization, word choice, and so on?
• Which of these communications is the best example, and what makes it the best?
• Condeelza Rice's Facebook page has a serious punctuation error. Did you notice it?

Don Sterling Finally Apologizes but Not Very Well

Los Angeles Clippers owner Donald Sterling started his interview with Anderson Cooper on CNN with a clear apology, but it was an odd showing overall. Business Insider called the interview a train wreck. The first part of the interview shown here goes well:

"I made a terrible, terrible mistake. And I'm here with you today to apologize and to ask for forgiveness for all of the people I've that hurt. I've never dreamt that this could happen."

But the interview seems to go downhill from there. Sterling said that he was hurt by Magic Johnson, and yet he was quite critical of the famous player. He said that he prayed for Johnson "when he had those AIDS," suggested that Johnson isn't a good role model, said that he "should be ashamed of himself," and questioned what he has done for the Black community.

In another interview, Sterling's estranged wife, Shelly Sterling, spoke on The Today Show. She is fighting to keep her part-ownership of the clippers and said, "I'm very angry. And I'm very hurt. And I even cried listening to that [Don Sterling's CNN interview], because I just feel bad. . . .Why am I the victim when he's the perpetrator? If somebody killed somebody, does the wife have to stand trial too?"

Discussion Starters:

• What could Sterling have done differently during the interview? Consider his preparation and delivery? Watch the full video.
• How are Sterling's own attitudes getting in the way of his attempts to rebuild his image?
• Was appearing on CNN the right decision? Why or why not?

Companies Adapt to Latin American Markets

Mashable describes several good examples of how companies adapt their marketing approach to different Latin American countries. In Chapter 2 of the book, we saw McDonald's website examples in different countries. The Mashable article, "For Marketers, 'One-Size-Fits-All' Doesn't Fit in Latin America," features McDonald's along with Coca-Cola and PUMA and highlights a "tip to learn from" for each company:

McDonald's: Showcasing local values

Tip to learn from: Taking a regional approach and then localizing it even further, through content, is a powerful way to be impactful in overseas markets.

Coca-Cola: Giving consumers in Argentina (and beyond) what they want

Tip to learn from: Research and deeply understand local customer demand to create locally tailored products, particularly in emerging markets.

PUMA: Understanding Unique Cultural Histories

Tip to learn from: Insight into deep-rooted cultural and historical nuances is key to resonant and relevant marketing in emerging markets.

Discussion Starters:

• Read the Mashable article, and discuss how principles in Chapter 2, such as individualism and context sensitivity, play a role in the examples.
• What potential dangers do you see in tailoring marketing approaches in this way?

News Conference About Hot-Air Balloon

A hot-air balloon drifted into a power line, caught fire, and then crashed in Virginia. The pilot and two passengers, staff members of the University of Richmond's women's basketball program, were killed. The state police led the news conference about the incident.

The University of Richmond posted this statement on its website:

Spiders Saddened By Tragic Hot Air Balloon Accident

Courtesy:Richmond Athletics
Release:05/10/2014

UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. -- The University of Richmond community extends its prayers and thoughts to the families of two members of the women's basketball staff who were aboard a balloon that crashed May 9 in Caroline County, Va.

Ginny Doyle, associate head women's basketball coach, and Natalie Lewis, director of basketball operations, were on the balloon that crashed shortly before 8 p.m. Virginia State Police have recovered two of the balloon's three occupants.  Official identification is pending from the Medical Examiner's Office.

"As alumnae, classmates, and colleagues – and as invaluable and devoted mentors for our student-athletes – Ginny and Natalie have been beloved members of our community," said President Edward L. Ayers. "Their leadership and friendship will endure in the lives of so many."

"Words cannot begin to express our sorrow," said Keith Gill, director of athletics. "We are all stunned by the tragic news. Our thoughts and prayers go out to their loved ones."

Doyle, a former Richmond basketball standout who graduated in 1992, has served on the Spiders' staff for 16 years. During her tenure at Richmond, she helped guide the Spiders to nine winning seasons, an at-large berth to the 2005 NCAA Tournament, five consecutive postseason appearances and a first-ever appearance in the Atlantic 10 Championship final in 2009.

As a student-athlete, Doyle was a two-time all-conference player, leading the Spiders to the 1991 CAA Championship and NCAA Tournament.  She is the program's career leader in free throw percentage and set the NCAA Division I record for consecutive free throws made with 66, a mark that stood for 18 years. 

Lewis graduated from Richmond in 2011 and began her professional career with Spider Athletics in 2012.  She has been with the women's basketball program for the past two seasons.  As an undergraduate, Lewis was a championship swimmer and four-year varsity letter winner at Richmond, serving twice as team captain. She was on three Atlantic 10 swimming championship teams. She also was a student government cabinet member and graduated as a Spider Scholar Athlete.

The university has arranged access to counselors to assist faculty, staff and students following this tragic accident.  

Discussion Starters:

• Assess the news conference in terms of delivery style, content, organization, and so on.
• In this video clip, we see only part of the news conference. What else should be said?
• What's your view of the university's statement? What works well, and what could be improved?

Pom Wonderful Steals the Show

Pom Wonderful did a great job responding to criticism from HBO talk show host John Oliver. According to an Adweek article, Oliver had "dismissed Pom Wonderful as snake oil and suggested putting stickers on Pom's juice bottles saying it contains dogs." This was after showing a clip from a TV show, on which Pom was promised to reduce the possibility of prostate cancer.

Pom responded by sending Oliver a refrigerator, a case of the juice, and a clever letter, which he read on air.

Discussion Starters:

• What's your view of Pom's response? In what ways was it effective, or not?
• The Adweek article referred to Pom's "strangely stilted letter ('We like to think we're able to take a joke. It was very funny. We laughed hard')." Do you agree with this assessment?

LEGO Resume Lands an Internship

An aspiring advertising intern created a LEGO version of herself in an suit and sent it to prospective employers. Northwestern University student Leah Bowman posted a picture of her creative resume on Imgur.

Images of the LEGO rendition appeared on  11" X 17" posters with  slogans such as, "Build the perfect Account Service intern" and described her skills. Bowman said that the design responded to an agency's call for a persuasive ad.

She wrote on Imgur, "I wanted to stand out to employers, so I made a LEGO set of myself in my interview suit and sent it out to my dream advertising agencies." She also explained her strategy to Mashable: 

"Looking for a job can be a bit frustrating at times. I've applied for dozens of jobs and had a handful of interviews, but sometimes there's just another candidate that edged you out. I know I'd be a great addition to any team, but I needed a better way to communicate that rather than just sending in a boring resume."

Her strategy worked: she got an internship in account management at Omnicom's Energy BBDO, an advertising firm based in New York City.  

Discussion Starters:

• Someone on Imgur commented, "And then you found out that employers would rather you just be normal." What's your opinion of this comment? Consider the discussion of creative resumes in Chapter 12 of the textbook.
• If you were an employer and had received this, how would you perceive the applicant?
• Assess Bowman's description of her skills on the poster above. How well does she describe her job qualifications? What could she improve?
• On one poster, Bowman wrote, "Build the perfect Account Service intern." Should she have capitalized the job title?

White House Climate Change Report

The U.S. Global Change Research Program just published a draft report, "Climate Change Impacts in the United States," which has gotten a lot of attention. The report blames human activity on climate change and warns of increasing erratic weather, damage to food supplies, and more warming conditions.

To help people understand the main points of the 829-page, 174 MG document, the authors provide a "Highlights" page on the Global Change website. But the highlights are still more than the average person will read.

The website also offers an online version of the full report, organized around the following topics:

• Our Changing Climate
• Sectors
• Regions
• Response Strategies

The report is referred to as a draft version. Will the final be even longer?

In another attempt to help us understand the data, this Washington Post article highlights 15 graphics.

Discussion Starters:

• Does the length of the report matter? Who are the audiences, and how do you think each constituency would, if at all, read the report?
• What principles from Chapter 10, Writing the Report, does this report follow? Consider the organization, visuals, writing style, and so on.
• Compare this report to another recently published: "Not Alone: The First Report of the White House Task Force to Protect Students From Sexual Assault." What differences and similarities do you see, and what could account for them?

Target CEO Resigns

Gregg Steinhafel, who was Target's chairman and chief executive since 2008, has resigned. According to a New York Times article, the data breach earlier this year and overexpansion in Canada, which has led to low margins and inventory problems, contributed to the decision. The Times describes one analyst's view that Steinhafel was partly to blame for the security break that affected millions of customers because of system vulnerabilities caused, in part, by underinvestment in technology.

A message posted on the company's website directs visitors to a full statement from the board:

May 5, 2014

Today we are announcing that, after extensive discussions, the board and Gregg Steinhafel have decided that now is the right time for new leadership at Target.  Effective immediately, Gregg will step down  from his positions as chairman of the Target board of directors, president and CEO.  John Mulligan, Target's chief financial officer, has been appointed as interim president and chief executive officer. Roxanne S. Austin, a current member of Target's board of directors, has been appointed as interim non-executive chair of the board. Both will serve in their roles until permanent replacements are named. We have asked Gregg Steinhafel to serve in an advisory capacity during this transition and he has graciously agreed.

The board is deeply grateful to Gregg for his significant contributions and outstanding service throughout his notable 35-year career with the company. We believe his passion for the team and relentless focus on the guest have established Target as a leader in the retail industry.  Gregg has created a culture that fosters innovation and supports the development of new ideas. Under his leadership, the company has not only enhanced its ability to execute, but has broadened its strategic horizons. He also led the company through unprecedented challenges, navigating the financial recession, reacting to challenges with Target's expansion into Canada, and successfully defending the company through a high-profile proxy battle.

Most recently, Gregg led the response to Target's 2013 data breach. He held himself personally accountable and pledged that Target would emerge a better company. We are grateful to him for his tireless leadership and will always consider him a member of the Target family.

The board will continue to be actively engaged with the leadership team to drive Target's future success and will manage the transition.  In addition to the appointments of the exceptional leaders noted above, we have also retained Korn Ferry to advise the board on a comprehensive CEO search.

The board is confident in the future of this company and views this transition as an opportunity to drive Target's business forward and accelerate the company's transformation efforts.

The announcement comes on Target's new CIO's first day on the job.

Discussion Starters: 

• Assess the board's statement: what works well and what could be improved about the content, organization, tone, and so on?
• Why do you think the board waited so long? Target learned of the breach in mid-December 2013. What factors might have played into the decision?

PayPal Executive Sends Rude Tweets

Rakesh Agrawal, former PayPal director of strategy, has left the company after less than two months. Apparently, Agrawal  wasn't happy with some of his colleagues and told all of us about it on Twitter: 

 

Agrawal was at Jazz Fest in New Orleans, perhaps having too much fun, when he started tweeting at around 1 a.m. 

AOL responded with a "zero-tolerance" tweet:

Agrawal said that he was using a new phone and had intended to send private, direct messages to his colleague. He also claims that he wasn't fired but that he quit. He provided convincing evidence to Business Insider, including a resignation email before his Twitter rant.

I say, who cares? He still behaved badly. Besides, AOL didn't say he was fired-just that he's no longer at the company.

Discussion Starters:

• Should Agrawal have offered the evidence that he quit, rather than was fired? What are the pros and cons of his strategy?
• What other strategies could Agrawal have taken in response to the incident?
• How does a mistake like this happen? In other words, what advice do you have for people trying to prevent the same problem?

Taco Bell: "Those Other Ingredients"

After criticism of its meat in 2011, Taco Bell came out fighting with a video message from CEO Greg Creed (who kindly gave permission for the video to be included with Chapter 7 of the textbook). Now, Taco Bell further explains its ingredients in response to the false-advertising lawsuit claiming that the company uses "taco meat filling" rather than "seasoned beef."

Taco Bell has said that its meat is "88% Premium Beef and 12% Signature Recipe," which includes seasonings, spices, water and other ingredients. This week, the company revealed the 12% in a graphic posted on its website: 

 

Although these ingredients don't sound very appetizing, a Popular Science article tells us not to worry: "...the ingredients in them are not scary poison that the average person will never understand. Most are fine in small amounts or when consumed in infrequent treats."

Discussion Starters:

• Go to the Taco Bell's graphic and click on each box. How effective are the explanations of these other ingredients?
• Why do you think the company took two years to reveal the rest of its recipe?

AOL Tells Customers to Change Their Password

The latest hacking victim is AOL, which urged users to change their password even though the risk sounds small. 

Dear AOL User, At AOL, we care deeply about the safety and security of your online experience. We are writing to notify you that AOL is investigating a security incident that involved unauthorized access to AOL's network and systems. Recently, our systems alerted us to an increased incidence of email users receiving spam emails from "spoofed" AOL email addresses. AOL's security team immediately began investigating the cause of the spoofed emails. Spoofing is a tactic used by spammers to make it appear that the message is from you in order to trick the recipient into opening it. These emails do not originate from the AOL Mail system – the addresses are just edited to make them appear that way. AOL is working with other email providers like Gmail, Yahoo! Mail and Outlook·com to stamp out spoofing across the industry, and we have implemented measures that will significantly limit its future occurrence. Although our investigation is still underway, we have determined that there was unauthorized access to AOL users' email addresses, postal addresses, contact information (as stored in the AOL Mail "Address Book"), encrypted account passwords, and encrypted answers to security questions that we ask when a user resets his or her password. We believe spammers have used this contact information to send spoofed emails that appeared to come from roughly 2% of our email accounts. Importantly, at this point, we have no indication that the encryption on the passwords or the answers to security questions was broken. Likewise, there is no indication that this incident resulted in disclosure of users' financial information, including debit and credit cards, which is also fully encrypted. Nevertheless, as a precautionary measure, we strongly encourage you to reset your password used for any AOL service and, when you do so, you should take the time to change your account security question and answer. You may reset your password and account security question at account.aol.com. In addition, there are steps you can take to protect yourself from cyber risks. They include: If you receive a suspicious email, do not respond or click on any links or attachments in the email. When in doubt about the authenticity of an email you have received, contact the sender to confirm that he or she actually sent it. Never provide personal or financial information in an email to someone you do not know. AOL will never ask you for your password or any other sensitive personal information over email. If you believe you are a victim of spoofing, consider letting your friends know that your emails may have been spoofed and to avoid clicking the links in suspicious emails. We place a premium on the security of our systems and our users' information. We are implementing additional measures to address this incident, and we are working with law enforcement to pursue the matter. If you have any further questions, additional information and an extensive Q&A can be found at faq.aol.com. We apologize for any inconvenience, and we are addressing the situation as quickly and forcefully as we can. Bud Rosenthal, AOL Membership Group CEO

Privacy Policy | Customer Support ©2014 AOL, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

According to PC Magazine, AOL also updated its email policy. An announcement on its blog says the company is working with other email providers to reject spoofed emails:

"AOL Mail is immediately changing its policy to help mail providers reject email messages that are sent using forged AOL Mail addresses. By initiating this change, AOL Mail, along with other major email providers will reject these spoofed email messages, rather than deliver them to the recipient's inboxes."

Discussion Starters:

• Analyze AOL's audience: who is the typical user (other than my 86-year-old father)? 
• How well does AOL describe the technical problem to this audience? What else about the email is tailored to this audience? 
• What, if anything, could be improved about the email?
• What's your assessment of AOL's blog post about working with other email providers?

NBA and Sponsors Respond to Clippers Owner's Offensive Comments

An audio recording of LA Clippers owner Don Sterling shocked the league with comments that NBA Commissioner Adam Silver called "truly offensive and disturbing." The nine-minute recording, released by TMZ, included these statements made to Sterling's girlfriend, who happens to be black and Mexican:

• "It bothers me a lot that you want to broadcast that you're associating with black people. Do you have to?" (3:30)
• "You can sleep with [black people]. You can bring them in, you can do whatever you want.  The little I ask you is not to promote it on that ... and not to bring them to my games." (5:15)
• "I'm just saying, in your lousy ******* Instagrams, you don't have to have yourself with, walking with black people." (7:45)
• "...Don't put him [Magic] on an Instagram for the world to have to see so they have to call me.  And don't bring him to my games." (9:13)

Commissioner Silver made a short statement and then answered questions during a news conference:

Head Coach and Senior Vice President of Basketball Operations Doc Rivers made this statement, posted on the NBA website:

"I would like to reiterate how disappointed I am in the comments attributed to [Donald Sterling] and I can't even begin to tell you how upset I am and our players are. Today, I had a meeting with the members of our organization. When you are around all these people, you realize they are just as upset and embarrassed by the situation and it does not reflect who they really are. That was what I got from all of them. They are now a part of this and they are upset at this. But, they are all going to hang in there and so are we - I can tell you that as a group and as a team. From our fans' standpoint, I want to say that they have been amazing, I can tell you that. We need unbelievable support right now from other people and I'm hoping we get that. My hope is that whatever the fans do, it is as one. I think that is what we all should do.

"We want to make the right decisions here. We're doing our very best to try and do that. We know that fans are in a dilemma as well. We want them to cheer for their players and their team. It will always be their players and their team. From the fans that I have heard from, that's how they feel. ‘This is my team. These are my players that I'm cheering for and that's not going to change.' I hope STAPLES Center is packed and people are cheering for the players. The players are now in the middle of this, and they have to deal with it.

"We are all trying to figure out everything as it goes and just do our best and we hope that it is the right answer. I'm still going to do my best and do what I think is best for the team and for everybody in this case. It is very difficult because there are so many emotions in this. This is a very emotional subject, this is personal.

"My belief is that the longer we keep winning, the more we talk about this. I believe that is good. If we want to make a statement - I believe that is how we have to do it. I think that is the right way to do it, but that doesn't mean we still don't wrestle with it every day and every moment. That is the difficult part.

"We are all doing our best here. Our players are doing their best. There are a lot of people involved in this. From one man's comments, a lot of people have been affected and the conversations that we're all having do need to be had."

As the NBA addresses inquiries, sponsors are pulling out. Mercedes-Benz, CarMax, Virgin America, State Farm, the Chumash Casino Resorts, Red Bull, Kia Motors America, Lumber Liquidators, and Yokohama Tire have all announced an end to or suspension of their advertising agreements.

UPDATE: Adam Silver announces that Sterling will be fined the maximum $2.5 million and banned from the NBA for life.

UPDATES: In another recording of Sterling, he explains his comments this way: "I know what I said was wrong, but I never thought the private conversation would go anywhere out to the public. I didn't want her to bring anyone to the games because I was jealous."

Time Warner Chairman and CEO Dick Parsons was selected as interim CEO until new ownership is decided. Parsons said, "Like most Americans, I have been deeply troubled by the pain the Clippers' team, fans and partners have endured. The Clippers are a resilient organization with a brilliant coach and equally talented and dedicated athletes and staff who have demonstrated great strength of character during a time of adversity."

Discussion Starters:

• Although the NBA has been responding to questions, the league has made no comment about the declining sponsorships. What, if anything, should be said at this point?
• What is suspiciously missing from these communications?

Board Terminates RadiumOne CEO After Felony Charges

Former RadiumOne CEO and Founder Gurbaksh Chahal is disputing his termination. The board of directors may have supported Chahal as he was charged with assaulting his girlfriend and plead guilty to two misdemeanors. But after more reporting and social media activity, apparently, the board made its decision.

RadiumOne, an advertising platform, announced the termination in a short press statement on its website:

"At a board meeting yesterday evening, RadiumOne's board of directors voted to terminate the employment of Gurbaksh Chahal as CEO and Chairman of the company. Bill Lonergan, the company's COO, will take over as CEO of the Company immediately. Bill has an extraordinary professional background and has helped build BlueLithium and RadiumOne into industry leading brands. We are confident he will continue Radium One's impressive trajectory."

In a blog post, "Can You Handle the Truth?" Chahal admits to losing his temper but denies claims that he hit his girlfriend 117 times. He also protests the media attention and social media attacks. Chahal includes an email he says he received from one of his board members two days before he was terminated:

"Been thinking some more. Absolutely don't do anything. Let the haters hate ad move on. This will blow over very quickly and we focus on the IPO.  Don't let them get to you. Don't respond.  I know it sucks but i think this is the right way fwd.  Stay strong amigo. I feel for you."

In the meantime, at least two reporters had called for the board to terminate Chahal: Kara Swisher and CNN Money writer Dan Primack.

Image source.

Discussion Starters:

• Did the board make the right decision? Why or why not? What does one's personal life have to do with the business? Does his position as CEO and/or founder affect your view?
• How do you assess the email Chahal posted? If it's real, does it help his case?
• How, if at all, does the image of Chahal with President Obama affect your opinion of him?

South Korea Prime Minister Apologizes and Resigns

South Korea Prime Minister Chung Hong-won has resigned, taking responsibility for issues associated with the ferry that sank. More than 300 people died, mostly high school students. In his resignation speech, the PM said that resigning was "the right thing to do" and apologized for "many problems, from the prevention of the accident to the early handling of the accident (BBC translation)." Initially, families were told that everyone had been rescued.

Critics say that the prime minister is a figure head and that President Park Geun-hye should take the fall. The opposing party called the resignation a "cowardly evasion of responsibility" and called for the president to apologize.

A professor of political science and diplomacy at Myongji University in Seoul said the incident will not likely affect the upcoming election in June. Shin Yul said that the resignation "may tip the scales a bit, but in terms of the elections, this incident has been unfavorable to both parties because voters are angry with all public figures."

Discussion Starters:

• What's your view of the resignation? Was it the right thing to do, only a symbolic gesture, an act of scapegoating, or something else?
• As you might expect, President Park Geun-hye accepted Chun's apology. What else, if anything, should she do?

NYPD Hashtag Failure

It's been at least a few months since we had a Twitter hashtag failure. This time, the New York Police Department started a campaign: #MyNYPD.

Unfortunately, the results weren't what the police force expected. Jokes about the police supporting the "1%," criticisms about race discrimination, and photos of officers frisking dogs and wrestling people to the ground dominated the hashtag for hours.

Gawker describes the campaign in an article titled, "NYPD's Twitter Outreach Backfires in Most Predictable Way Possible."

Discussion Starters:

• Why does Gawker call the results predictable? What other hashtag failures have we seen that compare to this situation?
• Should the NYPD have known better? Why or why not?
• Should organizations just stop these hashtag campaigns, or can you identify certain situations where they may get the desired results?

Polite Negative Reviews Can Boost Sales

How politely someone writes a review can affect how customers react. A new study, "We'll Be Honest, This Won't Be the Best Article You'll Ever Read: The Use of Dispreferred Markers in Word-of-Mouth Communication," published in the Journal of Consumer Research, gave subjects five versions of online reviews. Reviews that included nice phrases, such as, "I'll be honest," and "I don't want to be mean, but…" influenced people to possibly pay more for a product, even though the review was negative.

A University of Chicago Press article further described the results:

"The study also asked participants to complete a survey evaluating the 'personality' of the brand. Results showed that the review using the marker of politeness caused the brand to be seen as more honest, cheerful, down-to-earth, and wholesome than the same review without the polite customer complaint."

Discussion Starters:

• How might you explain the study results? In what ways do they make sense to you-or not?
• Read the entire study and assess the methodology using principles in Chapter 9 of the book.
• How does this study align with principles for conveying bad news in Chapter 8?

FTC Admonishes Cole Haan's Pinterest Promotion

Cole Haan devised a contest encouraging Pinterest users to create boards called "Wandering Sole." As a creative pun, people were instructed to pin five pictures of Cole Haan products and five places. It was a cute idea, but the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) expressed concern about people getting rewarded-$1,000 for winning the contest-without admitting the connection between their posts and the potential monetary award.

In a letter to Cole Haan, the FTC admonished Cole Haan:

The FTC is concerned about deceptive social media practices. An easy solution, according to a MediaPost article, is for Cole Haan to have people indicate that their posts were part of a contest. An advertising lawyer suggests, "A hastag that included a word like 'sweeps,' or 'contest,' or 'giveaway,' would have satisfied the FTC's concerns."

Discussion Starters:

• What's the rationale for the FTC rule? What situations can you think of where this may be a significant issue? Or, do you think this rule is just silly?
• How, if at all, do you think adding the word "contest" would have affected this promotion?

General Mills Changes Its Tune

Following criticism of its new legal restrictions, General Mills has reversed its policy. The change warned customers who interacted with its brands, for example, by downloading a coupon, that they would give up their rights to sue and would be forced into an abritration process instead.

In an email, a company spokesperson conveyed what The New York Times calls a "stunning about-face":

"Because our concerns and intentions were widely misunderstood, causing concerns among our consumers, we've decided to change them back to what they were. As a result, the recently updated legal terms are being removed from our websites, and we are announcing today that we have reverted back to our prior legal terms, which contain no mention of arbitration."

The decision was further announced on the General Mills blog:

Here's the company's tweet about the change:

Discussion Starters:

• Was this the right decision for General Mills? What are the consequences either way?
• Assess the company's blog post. What works well, and what could be improved?

Captain of Korean Ferry Is Arrested and Apologizes

The captain and two crew members of the South Korean Ferry that capsized with hundreds of people on board were arrested. As of today, about 75 people were rescued, 29 bodies were recovered, and 236 are still missing, mostly high schools students taking a trip.

In this video, the captain and a crew member apologize. Additional questions by the press are below. 

Q: Was there any place to turn? You evacuated the crew but why not to passengers?

Capt: I gave the evacuation order.

Q: Did you?

Capt: Yes, I gave the evacuation order to passengers too.

Q: Why did the announcement ask the passengers to stay in their cabin?

Capt: At that time, none of the rescue ships had arrived at the scene.

Q: Nothing there?

Capt: Yes, at that time.

Q: But you evacuated first?

Capt: No.

Q: Do you accept the charges of the prosecutor's office?

Capt: Yes, I understand there are some parts that are my fault. Anyway, I am sorry I caused the trouble. I apologise to all Koreans and especially I bow my head in apology to the family of the victims.

There are some parts I do not understand. There is no such (mumbles).

Q: Did you give evacuation orders?

Capt: Yes, I did.

Q: But there were many announcements asking passengers to stay in the cabin. Why?

Capt: That's before the rescue boats arrived.

Q: At that time, is it true the ship was tilting seriously?

Capt: The boat was in an area of very strong current, the temperature of the ocean water was cold and I thought if people left the ferry without proper judgement, if they not were wearing a life jacket, and even if they were, they would drift away and face many other difficulties. The rescue boats had not arrived yet, nor were there any civilian fishing ships or other boats around at that time.

Q: When did you notify the coastguard? When was the first sign of a problem?

Capt: I remember it was probably around 9.50am.

Q: 9.50am? Wasn't it 8.50?

Capt: Yes, 8.50.

Q: Did you feel anything strange before that?

Capt: No.

Q: Was there any place you can turn?

Capt: It is not that there was no place to turn the boat. I asked the crew to stay on the route. I briefly went to my bedroom and I was on my way back when it happened.

Q: You went to your bedroom?

Capt: Yes.

Q: There were rumours that you were drunk?

Capt: No.

Q: Are you sure?

Capt: Yes.

A transcript between the ship and a nearby island portrays "confusion and panic," according to an NPR report.

To add more tragedy to this situation, the students' deputy headmaster committed suicide. Reports show he did "everything by the book" but apparently was overcome with grief. He left a note that said, "Surviving alone is too painful while 200 remain unaccounted for. I take full responsibility. I pushed ahead with the school trip," and "I will once again become a teacher in the afterlife for my students whose bodies have not been discovered."

Discussion Starters:

• The captain and crew are criticized for leaving the boat and for telling people to remain in the ship rather than evacuate. What could explain their actions?
• From watching the video, what cultural differences can you identify? In other words, how might this situation differ if it happened in the United States?

Cute Infographic, But What's the Point?

Here's an attractive infographic, but viewers may struggle with the point. (Click for a larger image.)

How can you improve the infographic?

• Who do you think is the audience?
• What is the purpose? Specifically what would the designer like the reader to do?
• What "message title" would make the main point up front more clear?
• How is the graphic organized? What sequencing of data could be more logical?
• How could the font style be improved for easier reading?
• What text for each component would more clearly convey each point?
• How else could you improve the text?
• What design changes would you make, for example, to the colors, images, and background graphics?

Discussion Starters:

• This infographic was produced by Allstate insurance, and it is, after all, an information graphic. What are the consequences of making the main point clearer? In other words, why might Allstate choose this approach?
• What one data point in the infographic is the most convincing?
• If you're renting now, does this persuade you to get renters' insurance?