Out of Scope Issue 59: Girlbosses in the Metaverse
Elon at Twitter, Britney’s Insta, and new Netflix categories
This week, we’re looking at what Lizzo’s new shapewear line means for her personal brand, taking a quick tour through the metaverse and all things crypto, checking in on the state of reputation in the land of politics, and celebrating Britney’s Instagram presence.
💡ON OUR MINDS
Everything’s Coming Up Crypto
There’s so much happening in the crypto/metaverse space that we thought we’d take you for a quick spin. Giddy up!
An ever-growing list of companies are pinning their hopes on the ethereal promise of the metaverse, and that list now includes the home of the fresh, never frozen beef. That’s right, Wendy’s opened a virtual restaurant in Horizon Worlds, the virtual reality game from Meta, according to the WSJ. They join Chipotle, a metaverse restaurant pioneer — Chipotle is also expanding with a new game and virtual restaurant in Roblox. Per the Journal: “Up to 100,000 players who successfully roll a virtual burrito in the game will earn “Burrito Bucks,” good for real food at Chipotle restaurants.”
Meanwhile, Mark Zuckerberg is looking to develop virtual coins, nicknamed “Zuck bucks” by staff, for users of Facebook and Instagram. It comes on the heels of failed forays into cryptocurrency but is part of an effort to reduce Meta’s dependence on advertising in the future metaverse.
Last but certainly not least: Are girl bosses coming for the crypto bros? Women have long faced limited access to tech riches, and it’s no surprise the pattern is now repeating itself in crypto spaces. Still, the effort by celebrities like Gwyneth Paltrow and Mila Kunis to drive more women into the crypto fold is being viewed skeptically by some. Is this the latest revival of a trend that mainly centered on women of privilege, overstated inclusivity, and failed to deconstruct the power structures that keep most women marginalized?
The New York Times Will Tweet You Later
The NYT is undergoing a rebrand… of its social media policies.
In an internal memo surrounding their Twitter policy that was later leaked to the press, Executive Editor Dean Baquet wrote to employees that maintaining a presence on the platform is now “purely optional,” and those that remain on the app are encouraged “to meaningfully reduce” the amount of time spent on the platform.
While the mental health case for spending less time on Twitter is unimpeachable, the unintended consequences of this move are also unclear. As media continues to face steep public trust issues, will attempts to cut off this direct line to the public help or hurt?
In a slightly tongue-in-cheek post in New York Magazine’s Intelligencer, Choire Sicha explored the potential causes and consequences of the move.
In any case, here’s a hot take for the road:
It’s All Coffee and Chocolates Until Someone Gets Hacked
Hacker collective Anonymous is waging a public campaign against Nestlé and other companies continuing to operate in Russia during the war in Ukraine.
That calls for a lot of extra effort from companies in internal and external crisis communication, cybersecurity, and risk experts.
Anonymous claimed it released 10 gigabytes of Nestlé’s internal data, which Nestlé denies, saying the exposed data were from a prior incident where information was unintentionally posted online on a test website.
📡 ON OUR RADAR
Justice Kentanji Brown Jackson was officially confirmed as the first Black female Supreme Court justice in US history. Almost every piece of media coverage acknowledges how historic this moment is, even comparing the confirmation to Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech, “A Time to Break Silence.” At the confirmation ceremony, a few Republican senators were seen walking out while Justice Brown received a standing ovation. It will be interesting to see how the nomination will play out on the political stage moving forward.
Fierce critics make the best… board members? Multi-hyphenate billionaire Elon Musk adds another feather to his cap - he joins Twitter’s board of directors just one day after revealing that he’d become its largest shareholder with a 9% stake. Publicly critical of the platform’s commitment to free speech in the past, Musk is eager to make his mark on the social media giant.
Meanwhile, Trump’s new social media app Truth Social has not-so-unexpectedly fallen flat, described by one user as “a conservative ghost town that had been overrun by bots.” Former congressman and the app’s CEO Devin Nunes took to Fox Business this week to dunk on Twitter’s current state, inaccurately painting a picture of a stalling former giant desperately in need of Elon Musk’s help.
Press Secretary Jen Psaki will be the next staffer to leave her role for a TV gig, hosting a new show on MSNBC via Peacock and providing commentary for others. While Psaki is far from the first former government employee to exit for a media job, call us crazy, but we’re inclined to say that this White House-to-TV pipeline calls into question the credibility of all parties involved.
There’s been a recent explosion in Hollywood consultancies whose job is to point out bias in stories, characters, and productions. While simply bringing on consultants is not an adequate substitute for the structural change that many advocates want to see in Hollywood, it does represent a step-change from the past. And given the possible reputational damage to business from poor decisions and accusations of bias, the studios are likely to continue seeking ways to curtail risk by bringing more diverse voices to the table.
We all know influencers are constantly pushing sponsored posts, and many have cashed in on their brand awareness to create their own products. But this week, we’ve entered a new era with the first-ever credit card made by an influencer. Blogger turned designer Danielle Bernstein of the wildly popular WeWoreWhat announced a Visa-issued rewards card offering 10% back at WeWoreWhat; 5% back at a hand-picked list of Danielle’s favorite brands, restaurants, and shops; and 1% everywhere else. This marks a significant shift in the way influencers and brands are engaging with their communities, taking monetization of those audiences to a whole new level.
Telfar is receiving backlash after raising its prices for its new Circle Bag, retailing at $567. The slogan for the Black-owned brand, “not for you, for everyone,” has resonated with customers looking for accessible luxury. Criticisms of Telfar’s price increase raise the question: should a brand outgrow its values as the brand itself grows? Or are consumers holding brands, particularly Black-owned brands, to unfair standards as companies face ongoing supply issues in a competitive marketplace?
Uber says it hopes to be “a one-stop-shop for all your travel needs,” according to the U.K.’s general manager, Jamie Heywood. The app is adding trains, buses, planes, and car rentals as additional travel options within the U.K., in what CEO Dara Khosrowshahiis is calling a plan to become a “super-app.”
Lizzo introduced a new inclusive sizing shapewear line called Yitty in partnership with Fabletics. Many critics called into question the conflicting messaging of the rollout, asking, can you be a body-positive advocate while promoting shapewear meant to conceal?
While French President Emmanuel Macron’s reelection poll numbers are not what he’d like, his far-right opponent, Marine Le Pen, is mastering the art of the rebrand. Though still anti-EU and immigration, lately, she’s leaned into personal politics - playing up her role as a cat-loving, single mom worried about inflation, food, and fuel prices. This has boosted her approval ratings, even for those who’ve found her hardline politics hard to stomach.
Responding to Pete Davidson’s call for shorter movies on SNL this month, Netflix has officially debuted a “short ass movie” category to honor the sketch. (No really, you can check it out here.)
Anyone that follows Britney Spears on Instagram knows that her feed is now chock full of lengthy, emoji-filled captions under sped-up dancing videos, corny memes, and other random images. This week, Anne Helen Petersen published a piece in Bustle highlighting the beauty of watching Britney retake control of her narrative and her social presence after being released from her lengthy conservatorship. For those who worry about her posts and what it means for her mental health, keep in mind: Britney Spears is a 40-year-old mom from Louisiana.
NYC is officially running ads in cities across Florida to encourage people to move North “where you can say whatever you want,” referring to Florida’s recent “Don’t Say Gay” bill.
Welcome to America, where objects are large but not large enough. Burger King is facing a class-action lawsuit alleging its advertisements portray a Whopper that is 35% bigger than the actual burger.
🥊QUICK HITS
In case you missed these stories this week.
In the latest brand move to capitalize on the buzzy topic of ESG, the Boston Red Sox announced that its historic Fenway Park will use a portion of ticket sales to fund the purchase of “carbon credits” that offset emissions in an attempt to go carbon neutral.
In the world of celebrity profiles, Donald Glover interviewed himself for Interview Magazine. Trust us; it’s worth a read.
And over a week later, we’re still not entirely done talking about it… here’s another PR take on The Slap™ in the Washington Post and an internet culture take from one of HL’s favorite podcasts, ICYMI.
American Airlines is now offering connecting “flights” via bus - an attempt to rebrand existing forms of transportation amidst soaring gas prices, perhaps?
We’ll see you here next week! 👋
HL
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The fine print: This week’s newsletter is brought to you by this pug, Bizzy, who invites you to get a little offline time this weekend.