Mattel Apology for Chinese Toys of Death
China manufactures and exports just about any product you can imagine these days: food, clothing, computers, cars, toothpaste ... and toys. But quality control is apparently a problem for a growing list of "Made in China" products. Poison dog food. Antifreeze in toothpaste. (Come on, who doesn't know not to put antifreeze in toothpaste? Well, apparently the same people who put lead paint on children's toys or poison in dog food)
The latest is children's clothing "which contain dangerous levels of formaldehyde." ("Latest China Scare: Kids Clothes," Eursoc.com).
But let's back up a scare or two and consider the Chinese Toys of Death. A number of toy manufacturers, most notably Mattel, were recently forced to recall toys manufactured in China:
Mattel Inc., the largest U.S. toy company, recalled millions more Chinese-made toys Tuesday due to hazards from small, powerful magnets and lead paint, sending its shares down as much as 6 percent.
...
Also recalled on Tuesday due to magnet dangers were 1 million Doggie Day Care, 683,000 Barbie and Tanner play sets, and 345,000 Batman and One Piece play sets. No injuries were reported from those items.
If you can't trust Batman and Barbie with your kids, who can you trust?
Also recalled, more than one million toys containing dangerous levels of not-kid-friendly lead. ("Mattel's Fisher-Price Recalling 1.5 Million Toys," Epoch Times)
Naturally, along with this massive recall comes a massive apology from Mattel (soon to be followed by massive lawsuits ... Spitzer is already on the case. Gee, I wonder if he is trying to make people Governor Spitzer Apology for Misusing State Police?)
) To get the full flavor, you need to visit Mattel's website at www.mattel.com/safety/us/ and watch the video of Mattel Chairman & CEO Bob Eckert delivering the apology. I'd post it here, but I don't know how. Go take a look. I'll wait.
Okay? Back. Did you notice that poor Bob could not stop moving his hands? I'm sure some handler told him that steepling his fingers and whatnot conveys calm and authority, which is true. But if you do it non-stop it conveys "I don't know what to do with my hands." I'd suggest another take with about 40% less hand motion. Just jab and point and steeple to emphasize the main points.
That aside, this was about as good as Mattel could do in these circumstances. Leave passengers stranded in an airplane for hours on end and they'll be angry, but they will eventually forgive you. Poison their children with lead paint and magnets and you'll be lucky to escape a lynching.
Mattel knows this. Mr. Eckert and his company are scrambling furiously to make things right ... massive recall, internal investigation, review of their safety standards, new levels of inspection, tighter production controls, etc. All to the good, but all begging the question — why wasn't Mattel doing all this already? After all, we're talking about the children.
As much as I enjoy mocking the goo-goo busybodies who want to regulate and bubblewrap every aspect of life for the sake of the children, when you are the one of the largest manufacturer of children's toys in the world, you have special degree of responsibility to make sure your products are double-darn safe.
A solid crisis response by Mattel ... they are being transparent, forthright, proactive and all that ... and an evidently heartfelt, if heavily scripted, apology.
The latest is children's clothing "which contain dangerous levels of formaldehyde." ("Latest China Scare: Kids Clothes," Eursoc.com).
But let's back up a scare or two and consider the Chinese Toys of Death. A number of toy manufacturers, most notably Mattel, were recently forced to recall toys manufactured in China:
Mattel Inc., the largest U.S. toy company, recalled millions more Chinese-made toys Tuesday due to hazards from small, powerful magnets and lead paint, sending its shares down as much as 6 percent.
...
The new recall includes 7.3 million Polly Pocket dolls and accessories with magnets.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission said there had been
reports of three children swallowing more than one magnet and suffering
intestinal perforations that required surgery. When more than one
magnet is swallowed, the magnets can attract each other and cause
intestinal perforation or blockage, which can be fatal. ("Mattel Recalls Millions of Chinese-made Toys," Epoch Times
Also recalled on Tuesday due to magnet dangers were 1 million Doggie Day Care, 683,000 Barbie and Tanner play sets, and 345,000 Batman and One Piece play sets. No injuries were reported from those items.
If you can't trust Batman and Barbie with your kids, who can you trust?
Also recalled, more than one million toys containing dangerous levels of not-kid-friendly lead. ("Mattel's Fisher-Price Recalling 1.5 Million Toys," Epoch Times)
Naturally, along with this massive recall comes a massive apology from Mattel (soon to be followed by massive lawsuits ... Spitzer is already on the case. Gee, I wonder if he is trying to make people Governor Spitzer Apology for Misusing State Police?)
) To get the full flavor, you need to visit Mattel's website at www.mattel.com/safety/us/ and watch the video of Mattel Chairman & CEO Bob Eckert delivering the apology. I'd post it here, but I don't know how. Go take a look. I'll wait.
Okay? Back. Did you notice that poor Bob could not stop moving his hands? I'm sure some handler told him that steepling his fingers and whatnot conveys calm and authority, which is true. But if you do it non-stop it conveys "I don't know what to do with my hands." I'd suggest another take with about 40% less hand motion. Just jab and point and steeple to emphasize the main points.
That aside, this was about as good as Mattel could do in these circumstances. Leave passengers stranded in an airplane for hours on end and they'll be angry, but they will eventually forgive you. Poison their children with lead paint and magnets and you'll be lucky to escape a lynching.
Mattel knows this. Mr. Eckert and his company are scrambling furiously to make things right ... massive recall, internal investigation, review of their safety standards, new levels of inspection, tighter production controls, etc. All to the good, but all begging the question — why wasn't Mattel doing all this already? After all, we're talking about the children.
As much as I enjoy mocking the goo-goo busybodies who want to regulate and bubblewrap every aspect of life for the sake of the children, when you are the one of the largest manufacturer of children's toys in the world, you have special degree of responsibility to make sure your products are double-darn safe.
A solid crisis response by Mattel ... they are being transparent, forthright, proactive and all that ... and an evidently heartfelt, if heavily scripted, apology.
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