Need help with a very sensitive complaint against a massive multinational!

[MrsRickman]

Ok, here goes.
Coca Cola are running a promo via their Dr Pepper brand just now on facebook. It is called 'status takeover' and involves the application putting an embarrassing or funny status on your FB page.
My 14 yo dd participated and I was HORRIFIED to log into FB and see that her status read - 'I watched 2 girls one cup and felt hungry afterwards'. For anyone who doesn't know what this means, please stay ignorant, for those who do, you can imagine how I felt. This was compounded later on when a quick search through dds internet history revealed she had tried to find out what it was for herself. Thankfully, our ISP has a wonderful child filter!!
So, after various emails and phonecalls to CocaCola marketing I have been offered (quite offensively) as way of compensation, a night in a hotel and theatre tickets for the West End. Fat lot of use to me, we live in Glasgow.
So, how do I proceed? ASA? I am absolutely fizzing with rage and disgust, and want a full apology and explanation. CocaCola are saying they use outside marketing teams for different brands and it's outside their jurisdiction. Help!?

I would really like to know if they are going to be taking steps to communicate with the users of the application with a step by step instruction on how to make your profile private again.

But Jimbo, I doubt whether most parents would let their children read Mumsnet, but as I've kept repeating, Facebook is for children age 13 upwards as well as for adults so material unsuitable for children should not be on Facebook. That seems really obvious to me!

Good point onedietcokeboycott (love your new name BTW). 160,000 public profiles what people may or may not remember to reset.

"I agree with some of the arguments in this thread, children should be protected from things like 2 girls 1 cup" - THANK GOD - you have a small modicum of common sense.

"Well then, we need to make the internet an 18+ place don't we. Because these things exist, there is nothing you can do about it, and children do have access to it." YES MAYBE WE SHOULD:

There is no reason why porn is not removed from the internet and allowed only through some sort of pay channel. It is fucking pathetic the state we are in now. If this happens then yes there will still be porn but the casual day to day access to it for children will be limited.

LeninGrad "the expectations some teens have of sex are totally warped as they are getting their ideas about what is acceptable from hardcore porn."

Yep I can totally see that that much be a huge problem - so for any parents who want think about how to discuss this with their DCs or for any of these invaders who are disagreeing with MNers:

See Make Love Not Porn.

I agree with Kerrymumbles - this is now about getting this out to as many appropriate media as possible. If the main news networks aren't, for whatever reason, going to pick it up (which I can't understand - hard porn, 14-year-olds, Coca Cola, FB - what's not to make a story out of?) then target the less mainstream media, the business pages, the women's pages etc.

Private Eye and Psychologies magazine are two which spring to mind immediately.

I wish I could do more but it's a public holiday here so I have the dd's all day.

So, piprabbit, it's fine for you children to grow up spending all of their money on plastic surgery and dangerous procedures, which they've been brainwashed into by the media, but someone mentions masturbation and all hell breaks loose! I think i might just give up on society and go live in a cave somewhere. I'm sorely disappointed in the reaction of people on this site when someone came along and challenged your arguments. Name calling and slander are just 2 of the reactions i got. I thought i might come here, after reading the story on the guardian webpage, to offer my take on the situation, but most of you are obviously too immature to understand such actions, and have therefore gone on a witch hunt. God help us all if your children grow up to have the same closed minded opinions as yourselves.

You can use software to filter out porn sites, there is no call to make the internet 18+ or asking for the internet porn free. People just want a website that is for ages 13+ (and coca cola) not to promote shock porn to children.

A possible parallel option to pursue a la MrsB and the career mothers campaign:

A list of Lean Mean Fighting Machine's current and recent clients

Thoughts?

dittany - I think jimbo is probably an American, where freedom of speech is enshrined, and therefore seems he will have some skewed ideas. Was the "10 cents" comment made me come to this conclusion.

As for "are we now being taken over by IT Technicians" - I think that while Drew may have a point about there being limits on how much anyone can control the internet (and let's face it, the porn industry has indirectly been responsible for some of the developments, like online payments, and demands for higher speed for streaming video), but misguided if she thinks that a 14-yo girl should have the ability to watch that obscene video.

I've not seen it, nor do I wish to, and I'd consider it sick for anyone to wish to. I don't even want to know what else Drew has seen to suggest that there are worse things online - snuff movies and child abuse might fit that category, or torture to the point of killing / mutilation but if Drew has seen such items then sites hosting them should be reported at the very least.

I've been using computers for 35 years and have been out of college for 33 years, though not always employed or self-employed, but would not wish to be tarred with some brush that hints at IT workers / professionals / technicians / consultants are all insensitive to this material or that they don't have any morals whatsoever.

I don't side with Drew or Jimbo but it looks like they have had more 'exposure' and may be 'desensitised' if they feel they can justify or excuse anything which has gone on in this saga with Coca-Cola and Lean Mean Fighting Machine's application for Dr Pepper.

onadietcokeboycott

No more comms from Coca Cola, and to be honest I don't expect to hear anything.
I'm starting to become quite distressed about the whole thing, particularly since I just read a tweet from a 30 something professional female, linking to the Guardian article saying 'Calm down woman, it's just a bit of fun'.
Depressing at best.

I'm not sure why you felt the need to single me out?
I've done nothing except try and discuss the issues you have raised and give you my point of view. I even gave you a link to our campaign when you expressed an interest in the subject matter.

As for slander, name calling and witch hunts - please point out where I've done any of those things. If anything I tend to avoid confrontation and personal abuse.

I would deffo sue I am so at this

Maybe contact watchdog? I think this needs to be exposed as much as possible - totally disgraceful.

Jimbo, If being open minded means letting my children watch videos of people eating shit for pleasure then I'd rather be closed minded.

Some people have responded to your views with reasoned arguments, which you seem as upset by as people who have done "name calling and slander" and you haven't really answered.

Jimbo - sorry, for the record, could you just spell out for me exactly what your take is on this.

Do you think it is ok for a facebook campaign aimed at teenagers to actively encourage them to look up hard core porn vidoes such as 2 Girls 1 Cup?

If you do think it's ok, do you seriously not think that could in any way be damaging to any of those children?

And if you agree it may be damaging to some of those children, do you not think that it is therefore somewhat irresponsible of Coca Cola/Facebook to run this campaign?

And do you also think it's is ok for facebook to encourage teenage children to make their profiles public?

I only ask because I think you are getting side tracked by other issues. But I am seriously interested to know if there really are people out there who think this campaign is ok. Just so that we know what we are dealing with.

Not you particularly, i was replying to your post, which was in reply to mine. And dittany, if you took the time out of your busy schedule to read the entire thread, dr pepper also posted updates about masturbation, which were commented on earlier in the thread.

No I'm sorry Jimbo1531

"I thought i might come here, after reading the story on the guardian webpage, to offer my take on the situation" - What the hell makes you so arrogant to think that we want someone to come and register on MN and give their opinion. [Grin].

Your first post contained:

"If you don't like the Dr Pepper status takeover application, just don't use it. If you're that incapable of telling your child what they can and can't do, just stop them using the internet and leave everyone else alone."

but then in a later post you say:

"I agree with some of the arguments in this thread, children should be protected from things like 2 girls 1 cup"

Do you know what, I think I'd have respected you more if you'd stuck to your original opinion. .

Is it torture porn? i wouldn't have said so...

Hi strandedatsea, I think it's up to parents to monitor what their children look at online. Facebook contains many more potentially offensive pages and applications. I think it was slightly irresponsible of the advertising company to use these messages, but i certainly don't think it's going to MAKE children go and look it up. For them to have any idea at all about the video in reference, they have to already know something about it. This must have come from their frends, or websites they have been accessing. As for the making your profile public thing, you'll find if you look around the internet, that gaining access to anyones facebook profile or their photos is as easy as modifying the URL of the facebook webpage.

To conclude, I think it is up to the parents of the children to monitor what they are doing on facebook. This is very easy, just add them to your friends list and you can have access to their profile as often as your heart desires. Too much ephmasis is placed on the belief that it is always someone elses fault, and i'm a strong believer in if you don't like it, go somewhere else and let the people that do like it get on with it.

But the OP did monitor her DDs Facebook page. And when she spotted the offending status she effectively dealt with the matter - by raising the issue with Coca Cola.

No, i personally don't like it, but i can accept it as unchangable and move on.

Of course kids are going to look it up, don't you remember being a teenager! They think it is cool to know about adult things and they wouldn't be able to resist.

I don't think you can blame the parents in this case as they would not have expected scat porn to be a part of CocaCola's advertising! Who would?