No Such Thing as Bad Publicity?
by June Ong
What is considered fashionable art and what is not? Where do we draw the line between morbid and ingenious? Urban Outfitters recently released and sold what appeared to be a bloodstained sweater with a Kent State university logo on it. This is highly controversial due to the fact that there was a shooting at Kent State and four students were killed in 1970. Kent State replied with, “We take great offence to a company using our pain for their publicity and profit. This item is beyond poor taste and trivializes a loss of life that still hurts the Kent State community today.” This topic has also caused a stir through social media via twitter. Urban Outfitters has since replied with an apology. But one has to think and notice that Urban Outfitters could not have done this by accident. Through my analysis, I have come to realize that this is purely a strong marketing tactic. The fact that I am even mentioning this article and the Urban Outfitters brand name is an indication that the company has succeeded in grabbing people’s attention. I believe it is appropriate to say that over at Urban Outfitters, they must be thinking, “There is no such thing as bad publicity.