After the Horrific Events in Guyana, Kraft Foods Faced a Perplexing Crisis by Association
6/17/24 – – Have you ever wondered where the phrase “drinking the Kool-Aid” comes from? A new documentary streaming on Hulu, “Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown,” answers that question and sheds light on one of the most bizarre events in American history.
Jonestown, a cult colony in the South American country of Guyana, was founded and ruled by a charismatic figure named Jim Jones. His followers, mostly Americans, were part of what they called The People’s Temple. On November 18, 1978, during an investigative visit by California Congressman Leo Ryan, Jones instructed the men, women and children of Jonestown to commit suicide. Shockingly, more than 900 people followed his orders. The Congressman, several members of his staff and a news team were murdered as well.
What does this have to do with Kool-Aid?
Jones’ followers drank that day from a lethal brew of flavored drink laced with cyanide and sedatives. News photographs of the mass suicide scene revealed used packets of both Kool-Aid and Flavor-Aid fruit drink mix. Sensational media coverage around the world repeatedly referred only to the better-known brand, Kool-Aid.
The gruesome association of Kool-Aid with cult members blindly following the beliefs and orders of their demonic leader gave birth to the saying, “drinking the Kool-Aid.”
Facing the Marketing Challenge of a Crisis by Association
For Kraft Foods (now Kraft Heinz) this certainly was not the kind of “product placement” and global publicity they desired for their popular Kool-Aid brand. More than 200 of the suicide victims were children, the primary consumers of Kool-Aid. But what could they have done in the weeks following the massacre? Put yourself in the shoes of the Kraft marketing people.
Their product was in no way responsible for this tragedy. You could argue that reporters should not have referred to the drink by name. But there were no reasonable legal options and Kraft risked appearing insensitive and petty if they protested such a relatively insignificant element of so heart-breaking a story.
This type of challenge (covered in detail in Chapter 20 of The Crisis Preparedness Quotient) is what I call a “crisis by association.” What do you do when your brand gets pulled into a controversial situation out-of-the-blue, associating it with something or someone terrible you really have nothing to do with? These predicaments, more common than you may think, can be a brand manager’s worst nightmare.
Other examples of crises by association include: the news media identifying TIKI Brand backyard tiki torches being carried by members of the Ku Klux Klan through the dark streets of Charlottesville; Skittles candies being associated with the killing of 17-year-old African American Trayvon Martin by a neighborhood-watch volunteer; Corona beer being associated with the coronavirus; Heaven Hill Distillery, marketers of Rittenhouse Straight Rye Whiskey, being associated with the controversial acquittal of gunman Kyle Rittenhouse; and Anderson Cooper drawing the restaurant chain Olive Garden into the January 6 Capitol Hill siege.
How Did Kraft Respond to Its Cascading Brand Challenge?
Weighing the risks and rewards of any forceful response, Kraft opted for restraint, even as the unfortunate phrase began to take hold. In an April 12, 2012, Associated Press article looking back on the Jonestown Massacre, a Kraft spokesperson reflected on the company’s marketing dilemma:
It would be like spitting in the wind at this point — it’s just part of the national lexicon . . . We all try to protect the value of our brands. But this one just kind of got away from us. I don’t think there was any way to fight it.
As frustrating as this may be, I don’t think Kraft had any better options than silence. Guided by “first principles,” People must be a company’s first concern, ahead of Property, Products and Profits. A defensive response by Kraft probably would have made things worse for the brand and the company.
Today, customers are still buying Kool-Aid, especially in the hot summer months. And my guess is that most people under 40 (unless they watch Hulu documentaries) do not relate the phrase “drinking the Kool-Aid” with the horrific events in Jonestown.
Every case is unique, but the wisest default position when facing a crisis by association is silence. Consumers, if not the media, are wise enough to sort things out.
Documentary Looks Back on Jonestown with Historic Perspective
If you’re interested in learning more about the events and aftermath of the Jonestown tragedy (and you are a Hulu subscriber), check out “Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown.” The producers have interviewed the few survivors and incorporated extensive original film footage. As pointed out in a June 13 Wall Street Journal review:
What is extraordinary about “Cult Massacre” is the footage, which is extensive, especially considering that Jonestown predated the era of cellphones. Yes, there were news people accompanying Ryan—NBC reporter Don Harris, NBC cameraman Bob Brown and San Francisco Examiner photographer Greg Robinson were among those murdered on the airstrip. But the material captured at Jonestown before and after the congressional visit, much of it newly digitized and never before seen, indicates Jones’s doomsday approach to preserving his story.
Unfortunately, the question the documentary doesn’t answer definitively is what makes people so devoted to a charismatic leader that they will . . . drink the Kool-Aid. (Sorry, Kraft Heinz.) Maybe there is no good answer for that.
Crisis Quotient Blog 