As a rule, I usually stay away from political/topical/polarizing topics because the passion behind it can cause arguments that register on the Richter scale. The oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is now an environmental nightmare and I'm breaking my rule.
While following the series of events in the news, I’ve also been following a parody twitter account @BPGlobalPR. This rouge character claims to work for BP’s PR department. The 140 character tweets are satirical jabs at BP’s attempts to keep the angry public at bay.
Put aside for a moment how I feel about the spill, the company's attempt to maintain its brand persona or the anonymous tweeter, I think the whole parody is a cultural reflection of how today’s savvy consumers expect more from a global corporation and that expectation gets attention.
These cynical consumers have lived through enough Enron's, Goldman Sachs’ and corrupt lenders to know better. They expect more from a global corporation. They expect transparency and honesty. While BP may think they are being transparent and honest, actions, like ensuring their workers sign confidentiality agreements, speak louder than words.
The person behind this rouge twitter account has gotten so much attention that he/she/they recently release a blog post to explain why they are doing this. You may not agree, but I think it is an interesting perspective and an even better lesson on how communication is changing.
You can read it here
I would love to hear your thoughts...
I promise I'll be back to flowers, sunshine and puppies next week.
2 comments:
Loved Leroy Stick's "memo"..
wow, that guy got some balls. And he made some really good points. I particularly like this "You don’t own it because it is literally nothing. You can spend all sorts of time and money trying to manufacture public opinion, but ultimately, that’s up to the public, now isn’t it?"
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