When British rapper M.I.A. flipped her middle finger to more than 110 million Super Bowl TV viewers two Sundays ago, it caused the NFL and NBC to flip out too. Rightly so. Both organizations have codes of conduct, regulations, and responsibility to audiences of all ages who were watching the half-time show, which is where this gesture occurred.
There’s been some finger pointing and talk of how angry Madonna is, but meanwhile, M.I.A. seems to be keeping her head and finger down. Her fans’ reaction to this has spanned a range of feelings from "who cares" to "cheers." Will this scandal hurt her career? No. In fact, this scandal may enhance her aura and popularity as a badass. It’s just M.I.A. living up to her brand image, like any good brand must do.
This case in point goes to show that what’s seen as a “scandal” to some can also be seen as “good publicity” to others. The idea of success through scandal is not a new one. The French even have a term for it: succès de scandale. But of course!
Scandals in the world of brand image and communications are not uncommon. The questions that always arise are:
Who do they help? Who do they hurt? Are setbacks recoverable?A few years ago when Activia yogurt got overzealous in its product performance claims, consumers cried foul. Health claims had to be restated with a bit less creative license. For Activia, this was a scandal and it cost them millions. For a competitor, category scrutiny is a boost to overall consumer knowledge and awareness. Very often in a scandal, one brand’s bad news is another brand’s sales boost.
About a year ago, when Taco Bell was called out for its meat-blend filling, the brand addressed the issue head on through public relations. What we learned from this is that a scandal can be audience relative. Perhaps in terms of FDA guidelines, regulations, and labeling there was a scandal. In terms of loyal Taco Bell consumers, they still thought it tasted good, less meat or not.
So, ...
[Source: Fast Company]
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