I love pranks as much as the next person, but to me, it seems that April Fools never ends well. There is always at least one big company that takes their prank a little bit too far. This year, Google and Aerie had some of the worst.
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| The Mic Drop Heard 'Round the World |
Google added a "mic drop" feature to Gmail, which included a gif from the popular
Minions film and muted subsequent replies. To use, there was an extra option next to the send button that allowed users to send a message ending with the gif. However, there was confusion as people accidentally clicked the mic drop option, not realizing what it was. It also had some bugs in the programming that caused the mic drop to be issued without permission. These bugs bled into the professional and personal lives of several Gmail users and wreaked havoc. Unable to see replies to the mic drop message, users did not have the opportunity to explain the gif or apologize if it had been used accidentally. There are horror stories of users getting in trouble with their employers and significant others because of a mic drop misunderstanding. Thankfully, Google gracefully alleviated the situation on their official blog by accepting full responsibility and apologizing for any harm done.
Aerie, on the other hand, blundered big time. I have always been fond of their brand because of their apparent sense of body positivity. Aerie is known for producing ads using models that have not been retouched in any way. Of course, they have the benefit of hiring exceptionally attractive models, using flattering lighting techniques and having hair and makeup crews (as "natural" as the finished products may be) on-hand, but the sentiment still stands. Recently, they announced that they were launching a campaign called #AerieMan which featured a plus-sized male model (unretouched, of course). Yesterday, they announced that the inclusion of a plus-sized model was intended as a joke.
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| This just in: men are sensitive about body image as well! What a concept! |
Personally, I am extremely disappointed in Aerie's warped sense of humor. Rachel Champlin from Aerie spoke on the issue: "AerieMan was not a prank but rather an opportunity for us to raise awareness about body positivity." Somehow, I find it hard to believe that joking about using a plus-sized male model is an effective way to increase body positivity.
Until next time!
Kathryn
This is a classic example of "think before you speak". I understand what Google and Aerie were trying to do considering it was April Fools Day and they wanted to have fun, but to publicly use body types as a joke, knowing that today's society is as sensitive to their body type as they are to hearing a pen drop, this was not a good tactic on their parts in trying to maintain a good company image.
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