Read Joe’s post here.

Anything that proclaims health benefits and is still as sweet as soda has to be a fluke. It is common sense. Yet I myself fell prey to this misleading drink two summers ago. I worked at the Maple Grove Pool at the admissions and concessions desk, and we were always well-stocked with Vitaminwater of all flavours. I noticed that it was a very popular drink as many adults who came to purchase a drink would choose Vitaminwater.

So, being curious, and also attracted by the colourful array of different flavours, the supposed effect it was supposed to give (ie: Energy, Focus, etc), and the cheeky bottle descriptions, I tried one. It tasted delicious. Yet I didn’t feel that it was “bad for me” because it “contained vitamins”, so it must be good for me, right?

WRONG. I was so wrong. I drank this supposed “health beverage” all throughout the summer, and nearing the end of the summer I (finally) did some research. To my horror, I discovered that Vitaminwater is just sugar water with a couple of vitamins tossed in. That doesn’t make it healthy. It contains as much sugar as soda, yet Coca-Cola had the nerve to market it as a health product.

Joe’s post explains that Coca-Cola is being sued for their misleading advertising. I fully support this lawsuit as I believe that this is a breach of ethics on Coca-Cola’s part. Blatantly lying to customers about the fake health benefits of your product, in my opinion, crosses the line. America has a obesity problem that is not going away anytime soon, no thanks to Coca-Cola. If you are going to produce junk food/beverages, at least have the decency to state the facts, and not pretend that your product is healthy in order to lure unsuspecting customers.

Image source

In light of the recent scandal involving Oscar Pistorius being charged with his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp’s murder, Nike and Oakley have pulled out of endorsement contracts with the Paralympic champion. Pistorius previously earned millions of dollars from these contracts, but as the news broke sponsors began to back away from the athlete.

Oakley issued a statement, saying: “In light of the recent allegations, Oakley is suspending its contract with Oscar Pistorius, effective immediately.”

Meanwhile, on Nike’s end: “Nike has no plans for Oscar Pistorius in upcoming campaigns,” said a spokesperson for the company.

This is somewhat reminiscent of the Tiger Woods infidelity scandal in 2009, in which he was consequently dropped from many of his sponsors, such as Accenture, AT&T, Gatorade, and Gillette. Nike, however, continued to support him.

Why companies drop athletes and other mega-famous figures when they run into scandals from their advertising campaigns is understandable. Companies do not want to project the image that they support whatever wrongdoing that the person committed. Any company associated with the person may be seen in a negative light, not to mention sales could fall dramatically if they kept them on.

Some are a direct clash of values: for example, Nike dropped Lance Armstrong after his doping scandal broke out, but that was a little different as Armstrong cheated in his sport with illegal performance-enhancing drugs, while Nike entire business model is based on its advocacy of sports, the importance of fair play, physical and mental health, and goal-setting. Clearly, Armstrong was no longer fit to be a role model of the things  that Nike advocates.

It is sad to see famous and successful people throw their successful careers away. Why stars and athletes do this, I will never understand.