Brand Ng

Is E*Trade submitting user-generated comments about Lindsay Lohan to the court as marketing?

Looking like watery milk to me.

In the ongoing Lindsay Lohan Milk-a-holic lawsuit, E*Trade filed papers with the court, with user generated comments that are as nasty as you might expect.

E*Trade says it is simply trying to prove that LiLo lives in LA and not on Long Island. But user generated comments, such as those calling Lohan "a pot-stirring, lazy, irresponsible, disrespectful little drama queen," say something beyond geography.  

So is E*Trade simply trying to feed the publicity cycle for the Milk-a-Holic story?

I think it really depends on whether or not you think they will win this case.  My hypothesis when I started this post was that it must be for the publicity, because Lohan just doesn't have any leg to stand on--she's not the only Lindsay after all (think Lindsey Vonn or Lindsay Wagner or any of your friends named Lindsay who happen to like milk).

But doing some quick research, I found that Googling the individual term "Lindsay," results in Lohan's Wikipedia page fluctuating between #1 or #2,with a few other Lohan-related pages ranking in the top 10. 

Compare this to a search for LiLo, a term that is clearly more rare and ownable. Lohan doesn't rank in Google's LiLo top 10--they are mostly pointing to the Disney character.

Perhaps I am late in the game to think that E*Trade actually might have something to worry about in this case. Juries are already unpredictable, but I am starting to fear that Lohan might really be LINDSAY.  If E*Trade shares that fear, it probably isn't for publicity, and maybe it's just a tactical, pre-trial move after all.

...And if Lohan really is LINDSAY, then the ONDCP would certainly need to answer for this:

UPDATE SEPT 22, 2010: LINDSAY and E*Trade settle their lawsuit.

Phoenix Suns to wear "Los Suns" jerseys during playoff game as a political statement

 
     

The Phoenix Suns will be donning their "Los Suns" jerseys tonight (Cinco de Mayo) to protest the new Arizona immigration law.

Good for them.  The new law seems egregiously intrusive, giving law enforcement "broad power to detain anyone suspected of being in the country illegally."

The jerseys are a pretty powerful statement, but I wonder if this is going to usher in greater prominence of political or cause-related messaging on uniforms and in the stands.  

Yes, the Bucks have had Herb Kohl for years--and my sense is that they have generally been apolitical--but things could get unpredictable with owners like Mark Cuban on the scene. 

I can just picture it now: Mikhail Prokhorov, perhaps trying to stave off a light sweet crude import tax, gets his Brooklyn Nets to wear jerseys that read "Vote Nyet!"

 

UPDATE 5/6: Amusing comments from Jay Leno's monologue last night: "To protest Arizona's new immigration law, the Phoenix Suns are all wearing jerseys that read "Los Suns." Thankfully, they were able to get the jerseys made quickly using an illegal sweat shop, but they were able to turn them out. Boy, talk about making a point. The Phoenix Suns are wearing jerseys written in Spanish, made in China, modeled after their best player, Canadian Steve Nash. There you go, that is America! That is America!"

State of the Internet - nicely produced statistics video

Nice updated video on the state of the internet, by Jesse Thomas. Is there any doubt that the Internet sits at the foundation of culture, globally? 

Not long from now, we'll be looking at this video and think how quaint it is.  It would be as interesting as a video on the "state of electricity" or "state of telephony*."  Yeah, we get it.  It's important.  Everyone uses it, and a lot of amazing things happen because of it.

JESS3 / The State of The Internet

* Actually, the state of telephony might get really interesting if and when it starts to decline

Excellent graphic summary of health care - comparisons by country

Really incredible graphic published by National Geographic comparing the cost of health care, life expectancy and number of visits to the doctor, by country.  Notably missing: Germany and the BRIC countries.

National Geographic

Weekend at Bernie's

For the financial voyeur in you: several months of Bernie Madoff's Platinum Business Card statements are available for viewing, covering the costs of several family members.  Among the charges: $26 for a subscription to Consumer reports.  After all, you wouldn't want to buy a product that, uh, how can I put this elegantly.. um, doesn't deliver as promised.

via Dealbook/Scribd