Out of Scope Issue 84: Hurricane Blowback
Plus: Nielsen x Roku, McDonald’s x Cactus Plant Flea Market, and the Fast Company hack.
This week, our thoughts are with the people of Florida as the state and the nation weather Hurricane Ian. The storm has devastated the coastline and dominated headlines. It’s also presented a communications challenge to businesses. We closely followed updates at Nielsen and the disturbing Fast Company hack as well. Read on below.
💡ON OUR MINDS: Hurricane Ian
Hurricane Ian made landfall in Florida on Wednesday afternoon. Officials are still trying to accurately assess the damage. The death toll continues to rise, 1.9 million people are without power, and experts estimate about $40 billion in property and infrastructure damage. President Biden stated, “This could be the deadliest hurricane in Florida's history.”
From hurricanes to forest fires, natural disasters have been on the rise in recent years. Extreme weather is increasingly a part of all our lives, and thus has implications for the way we do business and communicate. Brands should be mindful of their messaging around weather emergencies and other extreme events.
Case in point: the CEO of PostcardMedia made a serious error when she called Hurricane Ian a “nothing burger” on a call with her employees, then asked employees who were scared to raise their hands. Several employees spoke to the Washington Post about how this made them feel underappreciated and, worse, unsafe. There are two important lessons here. First, far from “nothing burgers,” hurricanes are serious and should be treated seriously. Second, in today’s media ecosystem, employee communications are a part of stakeholder relations with the potential to generate public scrutiny. Speak to your employees as if you were speaking for your brand.
Media organizations are coming under scrutiny themselves. We’ve all seen weather reporters get pummeled by tough conditions on air, but people were shocked to see the Weather Channel’s Jim Cantore get hit by a flying tree in the middle of a report. Some have suggested that it’s unethical for media outlets to send reporters into storms when ordinary citizens have been told to evacuate.
Above all, Hirsch Leatherwood is thinking about the human toll of the storm. Our thoughts are with all those affected and their family and friends.
📡 ON OUR RADAR
Nielsen announced on Thursday that they will partner with Roku to enable “four-screen measurement” that includes desktop, mobile, TV, and connected TV. It’s an important breakthrough for the market measurement firm, which has been criticized in recent years for its failure to adapt to the streaming era. Now Nielsen is evolving along with viewers, which should lead to more accurate ratings.
McDonald’s is tapping into consumer nostalgia by introducing Happy Meals for adults with special throwback toys including the Hamburglar, Grimmace, and Birdie. The fast food giant is continuing its streak of branded partnerships by collaborating with streetwear brand Cactus Plant Flea Market to roll out limited-edition adult Happy Meal packaging along with four pieces of apparel. Those who purchase a Happy Meal through the McDonald’s app will be entered into a raffle to win a piece of the branded merch.
After Meta blocked advertisers from targeting users via their interest in specific social issues or political causes, candidates have been forced to get creative with their ad targeting as the midterms loom. Overnight, advertisers have been gauging users’ interest in cultural phenoms like Lizzo, Taylor Swift, Chick-fil-A, Ram Trucks, and of course, Duck Dynasty, to evaluate whether they might be easily swayed in a candidate’s favor. As Casey Tolan writes, “It's a sign that as America grows more politically polarized, the candidates are using cultural icons as proxies for politics.”
The media’s fascination with infidelity is nothing new, but in recent weeks, the internet’s parasocial relationship with public figures has taken it to a whole new level. Between Adam Levine’s sexting scandal (or what we refer to as the DMs that launched a thousand “perfect” memes) and Ned Fulmer’s affair with a subordinate, social media users have been quick to point out how their behavior contradicts the “wife guy” brand both have carefully cultivated. While we expect users’ appetites for similar scandals to grow, we share Marketing Brew’s assessment: “There’s no reason for your brand to get involved in the discourse.”
Fast Company readers will have to seek their business innovation news elsewhere for the time being. Hackers breached the magazine’s internal systems on Tuesday, shocking Apple News users with an obscene, racist push notification. Parent company Mansueto Ventures has paused operations at both FastCo and Inc. as the investigation continues. It’s a startling story that’s still unfolding, and we’ll be staying tuned for how the outlets rebound.
🥊QUICK HITS:
In case you missed these stories this week.
WIRED published a viral, divisive story arguing that a second job is a cure for burnout.
The Wall Street Journal put out a smart article that explains how Minions conquered Hollywood.
Musicians J Balvin and Megan Thee Stallion each launched their own mental health verticals.
We’ll see you here next week! 👋
HL
This week’s newsletter is brought to you by the new purple peanut M&M.
===