ATP’s earlier post What Happened to Saad Khan, coherently summarizes the tragedy of a young man’s death during the filming of a reality TV show for a Unilever product. Elsewhere, Farrukh Ahmed raises a number of critical questions and has focused on demanding a response, from the multinational giants, Unilever and Mindshare.
I did a lot of multimedia and technology work for Unilever between 2000-2005 and my colleagues and I spent many nights there to get projects completed on time. There was a lot of camaraderie and we got the opportunity to observe almost all the departments in action, practically as insiders. Some of the key people who worked there during that time were fantastic and those were heady days. But I do remember commenting one day, rather wryly, that if someone were to drop dead in the next cubicle, it would probably take a week for anyone to notice.
‘The Corporation’ is a soulless machine, dedicated to the pursuit of profit. Vision statements, ethical guidelines, and corporate social responsibility programs are merely legal requirements that have no practical bearing on how companies do business. I’ll never forget the “wise” words of an intern who flippantly said one day that business and personal life have nothing to do with each other. This is what the kids are taught at business school and this is the dream that plays out in the corporate world.
Some blog commenters have questioned Saad’s sense of (ir)responsibility for participating in a potentially dangerous reality show. Others have spun conspiracy theories around the fact that Unilever’s Corporate Affairs Manager is married to the head of Geo, and hence the media silence. Facebook groups are springing up each day demanding explanations. A magazine editor has urged people to stop jumping to conclusions and has dissed online crusaders. A satirical comic strip has emerged. Twitter is abuzz with the #SaadKhan hashtag. Irrespective of points of view, people are speaking up and most of them are enraged.
While Big Media is relatively quiet, possibly in connivance with the country’s largest advertiser and media agency, the online airwaves are on fire. Hopefully, Unilever will soon have a PR crisis on its hands, because “the people” are only just getting started.
I have a single demand.
Multiple third-party vendors were involved in the Clear Shampoo reality TV show. However, the project was commissioned by Unilever, and therefore, they owe the public an explanation, supported by documentary evidence. Once they do that, next steps can be determined. The public has a “right to know” and has a responsibility to demand accountability. Right now, the facts have to be brought out into the open.
It takes a tragedy that affects people personally for a shift in perception to occur and I hope that after this, people will start thinking, even just a little bit, about the “military-industrial complex” and questioning the super-power status of corporations in our lives.
Anyone who thinks “The Corporation” genuinely gives a damn about people is naive and needs to read a lot more and watch documentaries such as “The Corporation.” This is not about Unilever but about capitalism, collusion, and greed.
For those who choose to work at behemoth corporations and consume mindlessly, of course it’s a choice. Unfortunately, peer pressure, parental pressure, and societal pressure make a lot of hapless young people believe the MNC is the only career option and that the acquisition of the latest Nike sneaker is the path to coolness and acceptance. So, relentless advocacy and activism is needed to help people understand that there are alternatives.
When I wrote my original note on my facebook page, one commenter accused me of bringing up side agendas. There was no way I was going to give up the opportunity to bring up the military-industrial complex and the status of corporations. Hardly a side-agenda, it’s central to the issue.
The flippant use of phrases such as “collateral damage” is abhorrent and just has to stop. On a side note, we have to reclaim language from corporations, advertising agencies, journos, and the Pentagon.
A lot of people discredit online activism and ask for “action”. This is a step towards action. These discussions need to be kept alive; they contribute towards building a critical mass of “resistance”. This is not about “publicity”, it’s about demanding accountability, it’s about asking questions, it’s about saying NO, we will not sit back and allow <insert appropriate invective here> to walk all over us.
Whatever we do, it will be a pitiful drop in the ocean, perhaps with no tangible effect. We have, however, started a conversation – and that means something. We need to ramp it up and take it to the next level now and that is something the community needs to brainstorm and figure out together.
As far as reality TV shows go, I despise the genre, especially the current fear flavour that appears to be all the rage. The contribution of television to the overall dumbing down of society is bad enough, but this awful content, often premeditated and misleading, nurtures mindless competitiveness and humiliates losers. And … is often extremely dangerous.
Having said that, I agree that the show that took Saad Khan’s life was in a completely controlled environment and the tragedy could have been avoided. It does indeed smell like a case of total negligence.
Whatever comes to pass in the case of Saad Khan, there is a dire need to condemn these horrific reality shows, get people like Waqar Zaka off the air before more lives are lost, and at the risk of repetition, to analyze the super-power status of corporations!!
Sabeen Mahmud is the moving spirit behind T2F (The Second Floor) and PeaceNiche. This post is based on an original note Sabeen had written on her Facebook page, the second half of the post is new and was written in response to the many comments that came on the original note.
Important topic. But the fact is that everyone wants to work for and be part of an buy from the same MNCs that we are shouting against. How do we explain that!!!!
i so very agree with u about the fear flavor in tv shows being an absolute no no … If thrill is considered to be popular it should not be on the expense of precious human lives. Also, thank u for pointing out people like waqar zaka … i thought i was the only one annoyed by his useless and mindless dares mocking humanity
A little simplistic.
Sure, corporations are motivated by profits. But MOST of what they do is good for MOST people. Specially makes cheaper and better products possible through competition.
Yes, when they get too much power things go out of hand. But that is true for everyone. So, yes, lets have better regulations and enforcement. But the answer is not just to go corporation bashing.
The issue is made worse in Pakistan because it is so FEW corporations that control us. That takes away whatever balance is brought in my competition.
In following this episode I suddenly realized just how big and widespread Unilever is in Pakistan. Just about anything I can think of from milk to soap and everything, comes from this one corporation. No wonder the media is silent. take away the Unilever ads and nothing remains on TV!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kf3fybQaL8o
A milk product advert.,HUM MUSTAFAVI HEIN is an anthem written in 1974 for the ISLAMIC SUMMIT held in Lahore where all the leaders of the muslim world gathered. This anthem was written by Jamiluddin Aali at the request of Z.A.Bhutto, the then PM of Pakistan. As he did nt charge a penny for it but now the song is being used for commercial purposes to sell milk. The advert agency should have had the decency to atleast give credit or atleast seek permission to the creator of this anthem. Another example of thriving consumerism in our society although I still hear those lines in the anthem saying “Istemaar hai Batil-e-Arzal …….”