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In a new ad campaign for E.l.f. Beauty, Matt Rife stars alongside drag performer Heidi N. Closet as fictional personal injury lawyers “E.l.f.ino & Schmarnes. The brand may have been hoping the comedic duo would bring laughs, but instead, the ad has been stirring up controversy. Customers took to social media to decry the casting of Rife, a stand-up comic who previously came under fire for making jokes that blamed victims of domestic violence in his 2023 Netflix special Natural Selection, and at the expense of trans people in his 2024 Hollywood Bowl show. I know a thing or two about red flags, Rife declares in the new ad, going on to say that customers deserve better than overpriced makeup. Playing on the cost-saving focus of the ad, one commenter on Instagram (who gained over 20,000 likes) questioned whether E.l.f. lacked the budget for a comedian who doesnt joke about abuse. Dozens of other commenters urged the brand to remove the video, with some taking it as the brands condonation of Rifes previous statements against domestic violence victims. In a statement posted to E.l.f.s Instagram and TikTok accounts, the brand acknowledged the controversy surrounding the ad, but stopped short of directly apologizing or removing the video. You know us. Were always listening and weve heard you, the brand wrote. This campaign aimed to humorously spotlight beauty injustice. We understand we missed the mark with people we care about in our e.l.f. community. While E.l.f.ino & Schmarnes closes today, well continue to make the case against overpriced beauty. The statement did little to mollify those upset by the ad, who noted in later social media comments that the ad is still available to watch and that the statement did not address the concerns underlying Rifes casting. This is a non-apology. Literally. Its all intentional outrage marketing. Im sick of it, one user wrote on Reddit. Outrage marketingwhich involves sparking negative reactions to garner attention and engagement with a brandseems to be on the rise, whether intentional or not. Sydney Sweeneys American Eagle ad and Gavin Casalegnos Dunkin’ Donuts ad both spurred similarly negative reactions recently. E.l.f. Beauty did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the goal of the ad campaign and whether customers claims that the brand is engaging in outrage marketing have any validity.
Category:
E-Commerce
Whenever someone in Colorado shops for a gas stove, whether in person or online, theyll now see a yellow label that warns them about the air quality impacts. Its a move meant to highlight the health risks of cooking with gas, and one a handful of other states are considering too. Gov. Jared Polis of Colorado signed the law requiring warning labels on gas stoves back in May, and it went into effect this month. Under the law, such warning labels must include a link or QR code to a state health department website about the health risks associated with gas stoves. Gas stoves burn either natural gas or propane, which releases harmful pollutants like nitrogen dioxide and carbon monoxide into the air inside your home. Hoods that vent away these emissions arent always required in building codes, and as our homes have become better sealed from the outside airwhich is good for energy efficiencythat keeps indoor pollutants from dissipating. Studies have compared the pollutants from gas cooking to secondhand smoke, and even linked gas stoves to tens of thousands of cases of childhood asthma. Colorado law and legal backlash Colorados warning label law is the first of its kind in the U.S., though there are efforts underway in other states to add such warnings to gas stoves. The law is already facing a legal challenge. The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers has filed a federal lawsuit claiming that requiring a warning label violates the First Amendment, and that the information about health risks is misleading. Abe Scarr, the energy and utilities director with the U.S. Public Interest Resource Group (PIRG), contests those claims. This is a product that, when used as directed, puts your health at risk. And despite industry attempts to say otherwise, theres no real scientific debate on that fact, he says. Scarr also notes that requiring a warning label is not akin to a ban. This is not to tell people, Dont buy a gas stove, he says. Its to say, if youre going to use and operate a gas stove in your home, you should take precautions, like using proper external ventilation. Thats something most people may not actually be aware of, he adds. U.S. PIRG conducted a consumer survey in which secret shoppers went into big-box stores around the country to ask store employees about the health risks, the need for ventilation, or alternatives like induction stoves. We found that much of the time, consumers did not get information about these risks, Scarr says. And so we think a warning label is an appropriate step. Other states considering gas stove warning labels Colorado was the first state to affix a warning label to gas stoves, but its not the only one to have considered the move. A proposal in New York, cosponsored by State Assemblymember (and mayoral candidate) Zohran Mamdani, recently made it into the Assembly committee. Lawmakers in Massachusetts also recently introduced a warning label bill. There have also been earlier attempts at gas stove warning label requirements that failed. PIRG filed a bill calling for gas stove warning labels in Illinois in 2023, but it came up a few votes short of passing. In 2024, such a bill landed on the desk of California Gov. Gavin Newsom, but he vetoed it. Though Scarr couldnt speak to exactly why Newsom vetoed the bill, he says that the politics around gas stoves have been fraught. Gas stoves ignited a nationwide conversation a few years ago when some politicians became outraged at the thought of a gas stove ban. In 2023, an official with the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission mentioned in an interview that gas stoves were a hidden hazard and that any option is on the table to deal with that risk. That official quickly clarified that he had no plans to ban gas stoves, but the comments had already set off a wave of backlash. One Texas congressman tweeted that he would NEVER give up my gas stove. Still, both climate and health experts have sounded the alarm about gas stoves, as well as gas appliances in general. In 2021, Energy Star announced that it wouldnt recommend any gas appliances on its “most efficient” list moving forward. Gas furnaces, water heaters, and dryers have all faced scrutiny under the effort to electrify everything and get fossil-fuel appliances out of homes. And certain municipalities have also taken efforts to ban gas hookups completely in new-construction buildings. Scarr hopes that the Colorado law continues to raise awareness about the risk of gas stoves and that more jurisdictions adopt warning labels. Its not about limiting choice, he says, but about giving people information on a consumer product. With gas stoves, he notes, the risks are obvious: You’ve got a methane flame unventilated in the middle of your kitchena fossil fuel. Of course, there’s going to be air pollution.
Category:
E-Commerce
Eli Lilly has signed a deal worth $1.3 billion with privately held Superluminal Medicines to discover and develop small-molecule drugs through AI to treat obesity and other cardiometabolic diseases. Lilly currently dominates the obesity treatment market, which is estimated to be worth $150 billion by the next decade, and is trying to strengthen its foothold in the space through the development of next-generation drugs, acquisitions and partnerships. The deal gives Lilly access to Superluminal’s proprietary artificial-intelligence-driven platform to rapidly discover potential drug candidates targeting G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR)a class of proteins that can influence a range of physiological processes including metabolism, cell growth and immune responsesthe drug developer said on Thursday. In a similar move, Danish rival Novo Nordisk struck a $2.2 billion deal with U.S. biotech Septerna in May to develop oral small-molecule medicines targeting GPCRs for obesity and other cardiometabolic diseases. Lilly has been capitalizing on the overwhelming popularity of the GLP-1 class of medicines, which includes its blockbuster drug Zepbound as well as Novo’s Wegovy. It is also developing a keenly watched oral GLP-1 drug, orforglipron, which has failed to meet investors’ lofty expectations. The drugmaker teamed up with Hong Kong-listed biotech Laekna last year to develop an experimental obesity drug that aims to help patients lose weight while preserving muscle. Lilly will receive exclusive rights to develop and commercialize drug candidates discovered using Superluminal’s platform, the drug developer said. As part of the deal, Superluminal is eligible to receive upfront and milestone payments, an equity investment as well as tiered royalties on net sales, the company said. Boston-based startup Superluminal is developing a wholly owned lead candidate targeting a protein called melanocortin 4 receptor to treat certain rare, genetic forms of obesity and is expected to begin human trials next year. The lead candidate is not part of the deal with Lilly. Superluminal is backed by investors including RA Capital Management, Insight Partners and NVentures, NVIDIA’s venture capital arm. Mariam Sunny, Reuters
Category:
E-Commerce
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