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.
Some comments from the ATP Facebook Page:
– “This is so true. And the write up at the link is excellent.”
– “Excellent writeup. I agree that we have a ‘right to know’.”
– “not even we have right to know about such serious matter also we have to protest till the responsible authorities listen and compensate in whatever the best possible way to the sufferer’s family……”
– “Sabeen is completely right in saying that this is a case of total negligence. The life cud have been saved if and only if the life saving guards over there were more attentive….and there should be some more preventive measures for whatever the consequences they will face during those perilous stunts….. ”
– “I am changing my DP in his honor”
– “ummm…..i read the article and have reflected on various comments posted on Saad’s death…..
it’s only natural that such sentiments are coming through however we have to realise that this was Saad’s fate….he was destined to leave in this fashion and no other way! It was something decided by the Almighty before Saad even entered the world! Life is fragile and it hurts to lose a loved one but we ought to remember that playing the blame-game will never resolve anything! We should all rather pray that Saad’s sins are forgiven and that paradise be his eternal abode!
Just one more point i’d like to share….i read the post-monsoon rains newspaper today morning and was saddened to read about the number of poor people who had died due to various rain related reasons……for some reason i don’t see anyone protesting against the authorities, KESC or even the government! Some two-faced nation we are eh?? ”
– “I am shocked at such a defeatist attitude in this day and age. Seems right out of the medieval / dark ages when the masses were deliberately kept illiterate precisely to accept their situation as fate. By your logic it is actually defiance of the Almighty’s will to try a murderer because he/she was only carrying out God’s will. By the warped same logic, people should also accept the current situation vis-a-vis KESC, authorities or government as their fate and the will of Almighty!”
1960 called…they want their ideology back.
It’s outrageous and intellectually bankrupt to use this tragedy to espouse a political viewpoint. You can legitimately criticize Unilever and even GEO but where do you get off using to it to go after the big bad “corporations” and (?) the “military industrial complex”. For all you know, the unfortunate victim here could have believed in corporations!
Pathethic!!
I do think it all depends on how we want our society/community to be/look like.
The society is a sociological structure/constellation created by human individually (contributing)
-at times the society can (and will definately) develop into a CREATURE through processes of metamorphosis unless there are some boundaries/limitations , that are being verbalized and internalized into a manifesto that the individuals of the society can agree upon.
There has to be a code-of-conduct in society.
Otherwise it`s laissez-faire… and then organizations or individuals amongst the `sociological structure
I think the Saad Khan case is clearly one of gross negligence by Unilever and also arrogance in how their PR team has handled it. This is really a case study in how NOT to handle things. Anywhere else in the world by now the head of the PR team would have been kicked out for botching a bad situation.
But with a little sense they can still do the right thing:
1. Publicly fire who ever was in charge of PR and has probably already cost the company billions.
2. Express genuine regret at incident, speak to family, support them in time of need, but also make clear they are sponsors of show not producers.
3. Promise to quickly hold an independent and public enquiry and take whatever actions the enquiry recommends.
In fact, Unilever could even turn this moment into opportunity by making the enquiry high level and public with respected figures, including people like, maybe, Prof. Adil Najam of ATP, to show how it can be more responsible and transparent than governments.
Just a thought, for more real insights into how to handle this, Unilever will have to hire me :-)
The Corporation