One of the most controversial Super Bowl ads
this year did not rely on the usual tactics, such as humor, shock, a
catchy tune, or clever turns of phrase. Instead, the much-talked-about
advertisement from Coca-Cola simply presented the song, "America, the
Beautiful" in seven different languages. Outrage swiftly ensued, as
evidenced by a newly created hashtag on Twitter: #speakamerican. Some
even began calling for a boycott of Coca-Cola products.
Why all
the fuss? Many Americans feel that the only language that should be used
is English, not just on Super Bowl Sunday, but every day of the year.
Is advertising in multiple languages somehow anti-American, or is
multilingualism actually the American way?
Here are some important facts:
• The United States has no official language. In
fact, under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, it can be considered
discriminatory to fail to provide access to government services or
information to individuals with limited English proficiency.
• 60 million people in the U.S. speak a language other than English at home.
This means that for every 5 people watching the Superbowl, at least 1
was probably speaking a language that wasn't English. In fact, many
viewers were watching in another language too, thanks to the first-ever Spanish-language Superbowl broadcast.
• There are 381 languages that are commonly spoken within U.S. borders. The most popular are Spanish, French, German, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, and Arabic, per the latest American Community Survey data.
• America was multilingual long before English was spoken here.
Of the 381 languages spoken here today, 169 of these languages are
Native North American languages. While the ancestral languages of
American natives are often forgotten, there are still 372,000 people speaking them today.
• Many of the founding fathers were multilingual. John
Adams, Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, and John Quincy Adams all spoke
multiple languages. In fact, of 44 American presidents, at least half
could speak or write a language other than English.
• Nearly everyone is the product of immigration. With the exception of those who can claim Native American ancestry, everyone else in America is the product of foreigners.
Many
people will be critical of Coca-Cola's decision to showcase non-English
languages in the context of such a patriotic song, because they feel it
threatens their idea of what it means to be American, even if that
conception is out of touch with America's multilingual history and
current reality.
If Coca-Cola had wanted to avoid negative
publicity, it could have simply elected to use Native American languages
like Navajo, Dakota, and Cherokee. Instead, it chose to use foreign
languages, which are commonly spoken nowadays within U.S. borders, but
which are definitely more controversial.
The creators of the
Coca-Cola ad surely knew they would push buttons for a lot of Super Bowl
viewers and that the ensuing controversy would put the company in the
headlines. While the ad surely makes a statement about the multilingual
nature of America, the end goal is, of course, publicity. Even if some
of what's being said is negative, the company still achieved their
objective. The whole purpose of the ad was to get people talking about
Coca-Cola -- in any language.
Follow Nataly Kelly on Twitter:
www.twitter.com/natalykelly
Wednesday, February 5, 2014
Mary Barra, First Female CEO Of GM, Gets Paid Half What Her Male Predecessor Made (UPDATE)
Last month, Mary Barra started work as chief executive officer of General Motors, becoming the first woman to run a major automaker. Her appointment was hailed as a significant milestone for female executives the world over. Even Barack Obama cited Barra during his State of the Union address as an example of a woman who has battled the systemic inequality of the workplace to come out on top.
But while Barra's achievement is heartening, her pay isn't.
According to a sobering Monday report by Fox News' Elizabeth MacDonald, Barra is getting paid just 48 percent of the total compensation awarded to her predecessor, Dan Akerson, despite the fact that Barra has worked for GM since 1980 and has several decades more experience in the automobile industry than Akerson.
Quoting GM's January 2014 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, MacDonald writes that Barra will "get $4.4 million in total compensation, including a base salary of $1.6 million, in 2014." MacDonald contrasts these figures with Akerson's estimated $9 million in compensation last year, which includes a $1.7 million base salary and $7.3 million in stock. That's about two times more than Barra's pay package.
Moreover, MacDonald points out that Akerson will continue to make more than Barra in his current role as an outside senior adviser to GM. The company will pay him $4.68 million this year, according to the recent SEC filing.
A GM spokesperson told MacDonald that Barra's compensation could increase after a shareholder vote in June.
As Think Progress points out, Barra is hardly the only female CEO being paid less than her male peers.
"Even the highest paid women executives at [Standard & Poor's 500 Index] companies still make 18 percent less than their male counterparts," the news outlet writes, citing a September Bloomberg report on the issue. "While Barra’s gap between her pay and her predecessor’s stands out, there are other notable gaps. Heather Bresch, CEO of pharmaceutical company Mylan, makes 33 percent less than the average for the pharma sector. Denise Morrison, CEO of Campbell Soup, makes 24 percent less than average CEO pay in the food industry."
Money is not the only barrier to equality that women executives face today.
Case in point: Unlike her predecessor, Barra is not chairman of GM's board, although she does have a seat on that board.
“It’s kind of like Chinese water torture, drip by drip,” Heidi Hartmann, president of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, told The Huffington Post last year. “I certainly hope [Barra's appointment] moves the needle for getting more women in CEO positions, but you have to admit that there aren’t very many.”
Currently, only 23 of the Fortune 500 companies have female CEOs.
UPDATE: 6:30 p.m. -- In a statement given to The Huffington Post Tuesday evening, a representative for General Motors defended Barra's pay package, insisting that the "discussion of pay inequality between Barra and her predecessor is premature and flawed."
The rep wrote:
General Motors CEO Mary Barra will receive $1.6 million in salary and $2.8 million under the company’s short-term incentive plan, which totals $4.4 million. This represents two of her three compensation components. Specific long-term incentive compensation numbers will be included in the company’s April 2014 proxy filing, which likely will dispel any notion of pay inequity. Stockholders at GM’s Annual Meeting must approve the long-term portion of her pay. Dan Akerson, who had prior CEO experience and was chairman of the board of directors, was paid $1.7 million in salary and $7.3 million in Salary Stock awards for a total of about $9 million in 2012, the last publicly available record of his compensation. Akerson’s compensation did not include a long-term incentive because, as is now clear, he was not going to be at GM for the long term.
United Workers in Cleveland Get Their Pink Slips Via Social Media in Mass Downsizing
United Workers in Cleveland Get Their Pink Slips Via Social Media in Mass Downsizing
Growing numbers of people are fired at arm's length
There has been a growing number of people fired at arm's length, whether through text messages or posts on Facebook. But it seems that a recent surprise notification by United of a big downsizing, as it dropped Cleveland as a major hub, came as a real surprise to many who learned of the plans through social media, according to television station WKYC.
There was a letter from United CEO Jeff Smisek dated Saturday, February 1. In it, he said that the hub had been losing money for more than ten years and that the airline would cut average daily departures by about 60 percent.
Although departures to other hubs, key business markets, and a number of leisure destinations in Florida will remain, the big hit comes to regional flights. That is what will prompt cuts of an expected 430 airport operations positions and 40 catering jobs.
Although employees and unions have some sense that layoffs are coming, apparently the United employees in Cleveland who might be affected by the reductions were reportedly taken by surprise, according to WKYC.
"I've been a flight attendant for over 20 years here in Cleveland," Terri LeBlank said. "This is something very new for all of us, and we're all just kind of like, what happened? Nobody prepared us for it. It was just, we got the statement, and here we are."The big losers among the employees will largely be ticket agents and ground crew, as the Cleveland Plain Dealer reported. There has been general concern about losing the hub since United and Continental merged in 2010. Given that United already had hubs in Chicago and Newark, N.J., Cleveland was redundant.
> Find a new job in Cleveland
As the Plain Dealer further noted, officials in the city had taken recent events as positive signs. Not only had United planned to hold its 2014 annual meeting for shareholders there, but the Cleveland hub had bested other United hubs in morning on-time operations. Furthermore, United's magazine has featured Cleveland in a large supplement in this month's issue.
However, in December, United had told employees that many might be furloughed or reduced to part-time status because of schedule changes.
A local AFL-CIO official told the Cleveland Plain Dealer that almost all of the jobs were union. "These workers will have difficulty finding a new job that is as good paying," said Harriet Applegate, executive secretary of the North Shore AFL-CIO Federation of Labor.
United vice-chairman Jim Compton told the Plain Dealer that it was "essential" for the airline to make the change and that the decision was final, with "nothing" the city could do to change the company's mind.
Reductions will begin in June, with an unspecified split between layoffs and transfers. Compton also claimed that the move will stay within the terms of a deal made with the Ohio attorney general's office at the time of the merger. Although the agreement was made to run from 2010 to 2015, if losses at the hub were greater than $40 million in 2011, the airline could begin cutting service in 2013.
> Find a restaurant job
In addition, the cuts are expected to affect many other local businesses, from hotels and restaurants to hospitals. In 2011, Chiquita Brands relocated from Cincinnati to Charlotte, N.C., in part because of greater flying convenience.
George Zimmerman Boxing Match Set!!! HE WILL FIGHT DMX
George Zimmerman
Boxing Match Set!!!
HE WILL FIGHT DMX
2/4/2014 8:48 PM PST BY TMZ STAFF
EXCLUSIVE
It's official ... X gonna give it to George Zimmerman -- TMZ has learned, rapper DMX has just been named Zimmerman's opponent in his upcoming celebrity boxing match.
Celebrity boxing promoter Damon Feldman tells us, DMX was selected out of 15,000 applicants ... all of whom wanted a piece of Zimmerman in the ring after he issued the open challenge to fight anyone willing to take him.
But no one wanted to beat Zimmerman's ass more than DMX.
As we first reported, DMX promised to massacre Zimmerman in the ring if he got the chance. To be exact, he said, "I am going to beat the living f**k out him … I am breaking every rule in boxing to make sure I f**k him right up." He then said he'd literally piss on George's face.
The boxing match will be 3 rounds.
The date, time, and location of the fight will be announced at a news conference next Wednesday.
Read more: http://www.tmz.com/2014/02/04/george-zimmerman-boxing-match-dmx/#ixzz2sSaXN9TU
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