Donald Sterling and His Apol”oh-geez”

One can’t turn on the television or flip on the radio without hearing about the infamous story of Donald Sterling and has racial rant to then girlfriend, V. Stiviano. His recorded message has been playing on loop on nearly every news-casters' morning, afternoon and evening showcases. Athletes and celebrities took to their own personal podiums to express their anger and frustration with such racial slurs coming from an important figure. Sterling realized he needed to do some PR work (which, if you continue reading, I’m not convinced any sort of PR professional was consulted.) He agreed to sit down with Anderson Cooper and issue, what is most noticeably, the worst apology this century.

Sterling, Cooper (where’s Draper & Price?) meet in a quaint room inside Donald’s home to discuss the videos, Sterling’s relationship with V., and finally air out Sterling’s side of the story. Conversation casually carries on as they discuss the details that have so obviously been thrown around by the media. Any normal person would figure that this was him coming forward to apologize, not only to his Clippers team, but to the African American demographic that took offense to the owner’s words. Sadly…that wasn’t the case. He explains, “Am I entitled to one mistake? I mean, I love my league, I love my partners.” So, attention fellow NBA owners: Donald Sterling didn’t mean to offend you. Shockingly enough, what was to follow was even worse.

Magic Johnson, who was photographed with Donald’s girlfriend on Instagram and was the kick-start to this ordeal, was quoted by Sterling to “want to help” with the whole ordeal. That’s why Sterling claims to have waited so long to issue any sort of statement or come forward with an interview. But when Magic supposedly “fell through,” Sterling decided to one-up himself with his offensive comments. He tells Andersen, "Here is a man who's—I don't know if I should say this—he acts so holy. I mean, he made love to every girl in every city in America, and he had AIDS, and when he had those AIDS, I went to my synagogue and I prayed for him. I hoped he could live and be well. I didn't criticize him. I could have—is he an example for children?"

What this PR crisis lacked, besides an actual PR team, is sincerity. His mock sob session while on the air really did convey a sense of being sorry, but only for being caught. As a PR Professional, it is absolutely key to make sure that a client is not only timely with a statement/apology, but offers a genuine acknowledgment of a wrong committed and a solution at hand to make it right. Sorry Donald, but I guess it looks like magic just wasn’t on your side.

Written by Maggie Burke of Rebecca Adele PR & Events.

To watch a few highlights of the interview, the link of provided below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4r8TrfWznQ

Disney Princess Merida’s Makeover Receives Public Criticism

We all know that the media has heavy influence on our perception of beauty, but to what extent? Well, if you’ve seen the Disney movie “Brave,” then you’ll be surprised to hear about Princess Merida’s makeover.

The Merida we all know and love from the movie underwent several alterations on Disney’s website. First, they switched her outfit from a functional dress that was appropriate for her outdoor adventures to a much brighter and frillier low-cut dress. Apparently her bow and arrows were not feminine enough, so those were removed. 

Then comes the changes to the Princess’ previously young, girl-like figure. Her waist had been cinched and her bust area was clearly increased. As if that wasn’t enough, they gave her longer eyelashes, rosier cheeks, and her young, excited smile was replaced by a sultry smirk. For a movie targeted at the younger age crowd, no wonder the public lashed out!

The Princess Merida that should be a character to which young girls could relate and look up to was transformed into an over-sexualized woman. I completely understand why Disney got so much backlash over the makeover because it just proves how the media tries to promote unhealthy and often times unrealistic versions of what women should strive to look like. It’s no wonder why so many women struggle with body image issues!

Although Disney quietly replaced the image with the Pixar original after all of the negative criticism it received, I think this incident is just a part of an even bigger problem of body image in the media that needs to be addressed. Disney should take this backlash into consideration from now on when deciding how to create the characters in their movies and other companies in the media should take note. 

Written by Rachel Ausperk from Rebecca Adele PR & Events