Bullshit in a bottle.In what is quite possibly the last word in cynical advertising, Starbucks and PepsiCo have teamed up with Matt Damon (the Hollywood star The Hollywood Star was an idiosyncratic gossip tabloid published on an erratic schedule in Hollywood, California by William Kern, who wrote much of the magazine under the pseudonym "Bill Dakota. who drives a Toyoto Prius to save money, not to be part of an 'environmental trend', so he says) to distribute a brand of 'charitable' bottled water called Ethos. PR Watch reports that, at a time when more and more major US cities are trying to reduce the use of bottled drinking water drinking water supply of water available to animals for drinking supplied via nipples, in troughs, dams, ponds and larger natural water sources; an insufficient supply leads to dehydration; it can be the source of infection, e.g. leptospirosis, salmonellosis, or of poisoning, e.g. because of energy consumption and pollution concerns, Starbucks will be using PepsiCo to help distribute the bottled water to tens of thousands of supermarkets, drugstores and wholesalers in the US. Ostensibly os·ten·si·ble adj. Represented or appearing as such; ostensive: His ostensible purpose was charity, but his real goal was popularity. , the aim is to call attention to the plight of impoverished Africans who lack access to safe, clean drinking water. According to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. the Ethos Water Ethos water is a brand of bottled water owned by Starbucks and sold throughout North America. It is known for its campaign to raise ten million dollars by donating between five and ten cents from every sale to a non-governmental organization working to increase access to clean drinking website, five cents from each bottle purchased is donated to a Starbucks foundation to 'alleviate the world water crisis'. Given that the water retails at $1.80 per bottle and five cents represents just a three per cent donation, it would seem that 'helping children get clean water' may not be quite as important as boosting company coffers after a rocky 2007. Critics say it is a profit-making enterprise disguised as humanitarian relief, that Ethos is exploiting the plight of Africans to sell more bottled water, and that donating directly to a reputable charity dedicated to water projects in Africa is a better way to address this serious problem. |
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