Never forget to incite a widespread social media shitstorm by using 9/11 as a prop to crassly promote your brand. Today's most high-profile offender is AT&T, which made a tweet today reminding followers to "never forget," alongside one of their precious gadgets photographing the Tribute In Light. Everybody immediately excoriated the corporation, and the tweet was promptly disappeared. This apology followed:
We apologize to anyone who felt our post was in poor taste. The image was solely meant to pay respect to those affected by the 9/11 tragedy.
— AT&T (@ATT) September 11, 2013
So if for some reason you thought that wasn't a totally cool tweet and got your panties in a bunch over it, then AT&T is real sorry, okay? No, turns out it's not okay. Twitter would not be so easily placated. Here are some of most scathing retorts to AT&T's classic measured apology:
@ATT This is like a sandwich shop going to a high school car accident funeral holding a sign 'Sorry your kids are dead! EAT AT JOE'S!'
— Troy Blackford (@TBlackford3) September 11, 2013
@ATT "solely meant" while you put your marketing brand on it. Right.
— caylen (@caylenb) September 11, 2013
@ATT Whoever thought that was a reasonable thing to do has no idea what the hell they're doing and should be spoken to clearly and slowly.
— ʝoεɭ ɱҁʗoү סןסץ (@BooDooPerson) September 11, 2013
@ATT my cousin did not die to sell more smartphones.
— Danny Deraney (@DannyDeraney) September 11, 2013
To be sure, AT&T wasn't the only corporation wrapping itself in 9/11 to raise brand awareness. Comedian Joe Mandel has been avidly curating all the tasteless corporate 9/11 tweets. And then there's this:
@sarahw I think I can top it with this, via @petersagal : pic.twitter.com/kz0gHL7QFN
— Sue Trowbridge (@trow125) September 11, 2013
