Santa's Watching? and So is Ring Communications | BostInno

Our Naughty and Nice List of Big Names and Brands

Considering how much companies and brands use Santa/Christmas for marketing, you?d think they would take him a little more seriously. Everyone knows December is your last chance at a big, genuine-hearted act that?ll toss you over onto the nice list. Most big names are getting coal this year ? that?s nothing new.

Some seem to know he?s watching, though, and more importantly, America is watching, too ? with a highly emotional eye. They know when you?ve been bad or good.?Guess what? The littlest Ring over at Ring Communications has been watching too.

Starbucks ? NAUGHTY

Starbucks made the naughty list for a few reasons. First of all, at those prices they?re essentially asking you to trade your firstborn for a venti latte. ?Whatever.

Secondly, they got slammed this year in a huge lawsuit because they were letting supervisors take tips from baristas. ?Come on ? we?ve all worked minimum wage jobs. ?At a coffee shop, every barista probably takes home
9, maybe 10, extra bucks in tips at the end of a six-hour shift. ?If my supervisor came out of his or her office 5 minutes before my shift was over and took a share of the tips, I?d puncture them with a milk steamer.

Third, (yes, they?ve been that bad,) their last December attempt to make the good list was to start some hashtag of #spreadthecheer and stream all the responses onto a screen at London?s Natural History Museum. ?What they didn?t consider was the fact that a lot of people are pissed at Starbucks. ?People with Twitter accounts. Profane, Starbucks-bashing tweets were streamed live at the Natural History Museum?by Starbucks.

Here are a couple of those festive tweets. For the rest, see the HuffPo article here.

Hasbro ? NICE

Hasbro knows the deal. ?Despite seriously sexist marketing, (go check the girls toys vs boys toys on their site) they went for the end-of-the-year-good-deed leap to the nice list. ?And they?ve made it. When McKenna Pope, 12 years old, started a petition asking Hasbro to style their easy-bake oven a little more gender-neutral, Hasbro?s PR rep essentially said no. ?They then proceeded to get castrated?on all social media platforms imaginable.

I?m assuming Santa was shaking his finger at them too, because they responded to the outburst by inviting McKenna to their headquarters and revealing their new Easy Bake oven designs in silver and black colors. ?Good job, guys. ?It?s been a rough year for feminists (if you need proof, see Mitt Romney?s mess of a presidential debate speech on women in the workforce here.) This is a small step forward. ?Hasbro gets a pony this year.

Instagram ? NAUGHTY

In case you haven?t heard, Instagram?s new privacy policy (via CNN) involves its ability to share photos with Facebook. ?Fairly harmless. ?But there?s also a line in there that says ?a business or other entity may pay Instagram? for the use of user images and ?may do so without any compensation to you.?

So whether you?re a professional photographer or not, Instagram can take your photos, sell them, and never tell you or compensate you for them.

Very, very naughty. ?Coal for Instagram.

University of North Alabama ? NICE

I know what you?re thinking ? what?s UNA doing up here? ?But Santa sees everyone, so when UNA made the right call on Sunday night, without hesitation, I was relieved. ?They did good. ?In case you missed it, one of their football players wedged a racial slur into an all-around disrespectful tweet during Obama?s speech in Newtown, Connecticut.

I was nervous about the university?s reaction because inappropriate tweets from students is an issue all schools handle differently. ?The lines are blurred. ?They couldn?t expel him, necessarily. But they removed him from the team immediately and released a statement expressing their disappointment.

?We can?t trample on his First Amendment rights, but at the same time, we?re trying to turn episodes like this into educational moments,? said UNA President William Cale. ?Right on. ?Santa, give UNA that gender-neutral Easy Bake Oven for Christmas.

The Grammys ? NAUGHTY, BUT TRYING.

At this point, I really don?t think there?s anything that the Grammy?s can do to get off the naughty list for allowing Chris Brown to perform 3 years after he was arrested for beating up his girlfriend, Rihanna. ?At a time when the nation supposedly has a heightened awareness about the effects of bullying, inviting Brown to perform was an overall terrible move clearly choosing profit over morals.

It?s not surprising that this year they?re trying to win the empowered women back on their side. ?You?re crazy if you think Mrs. Claus doesn?t have the final say on that list before Santa heads out for the night. ?So the Grammys are trying to make it up to you, ladies, by launching a Twitter chat series with a list of all-female musicians.? This is cool. ?It would be cooler if they had included Rihanna, but she probably told them to screw off. ?Hopefully that?s what happened.

Becca Ring ? Naughty (again)

As for me?well, I just made a joke at Ernie Boch Jr.?s expense on Twitter and he replied?so I?m officially on the naughty list. ? Luckily for me, EBJ has a great sense of humor and forgave me.

Oh well. Go out with a bang, right?

Happy Holidays from the RingComm Girls!

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