Neutrogena broke its silence and leaves more to answer for

Neutrogena issued a statement that admits a feeling and blames the wait on a grieving family. Plus Goldman counted who's talking about AI on earnings calls

What Corporate America says when $100 billion comes back

Every company is getting the same refund question this earnings cycle. Plus Target's CEO is six months into the most-watched turnaround in retail without once saying the word 'turnaround.'

Where are you, Neutrogena?

Neutrogena declines comment through a second Panettiere news cycle, so I wrote a statement for them. Plus NIPSCO's words are fine amid its weeklong outage but the substance isn't backing it up.

A tale of two apologies: Flock and Equinox

Flock's fine print, Equinox's two statements, and the betting line on your next earnings call that IR should be investigating.

Saber's comms team wrote a good statement and the CEO destroyed it

The Tata chairman's honest resignation letter cost $4.6 billion and a Saber statement that survived less than a day once the CEO started talking.

The AI manifesto wars

Zuck joins the CEO manifesto trend

Retailers are racing to prove they're cheaper while paychecks shrink

The American consumer got poorer, retailers are naming prices down to the penny while DC tries to claim them, and Wendy's announced a turnaround it hasn't finished writing.

The oil industry's record quarter in the flattest possible voice

Starbucks Korea now under criminal investigation for their Tank Day promotion, and the oil industry just posted its best quarter ever without a word of celebration.

Google's bundled departure announcement and a new study on what leaders actually reward

How Google folded four exits into one calm headline, and a new study measures how internal culture is shaping your next external reputation problem

Chipotle had answers ready. OpenAI's influencers did not

How Chipotle earned a health official's vouch mid-outbreak, and the brand trip that came without an answer key.

A PR agency invented 15 fake publicists to pitch reporters

On Xbox's billion-player bet and the publicists who don't exist.

In-N-Out communicates through the unimaginable

The statement In-N-Out's owner wrote herself, and the startup apology that turned one bad day into many.

Sony got the decision right but it's running out of time on the delivery

The math backs Sony's call but the August 23 boycott is a different test than an earnings call. Plus: the settlement that closed X's lawsuit against its own advertisers.

Starbucks built a strategic narrative the market trusts

Niccol's two-year message finally cashes out — and now comes the hard part. Plus: OpenAI's models broke into Hugging Face on their own; how each company talked about it depends entirely on where they were standing

The memos behind this week's layoffs and lawsuits

Porsche, Visa, Paramount and BuzzFeed all delivered hard news this week. Each memo tells you exactly who the writer was working for.

Cracker Barrel fixed the business but it couldn't fix the CEO

Cracker Barrel's fine print, GMMTV's queue problem, and the slide mistake probably already waiting in your next deck.

Taylor Farms' founder tries to change the subject

Four companies preparing for earnings this week needing to explain what their AI money bought, and a lettuce baron would rather discuss how little salad America is eating.

The tariff clock resets just in time for earnings season

A new tariff clock resets with next August's deadline already circled on the calendar, and BYD prices the same mistake twice before its customers do the math for them

Senators are talking about Olive Garden but Olive Garden is talking about pasta

Olive Garden ignores senators but answers customers, new data says your next crisis spokesperson may not be the CEO, and one retail chief gives his most honest sentence about pay to a reporter instead of his own people.

ESPN's most human layoff move looked like its cruelest

ESPN blew up its own layoff choreography to keep Ryan Clark from learning his fate on X, and the internet called it diabolical anyway. Plus the tanker company whose pay offer says the thing no press release ever will.

Taylor Farms claimed victory but the FDA said otherwise

Taylor Farms turned an FDA lab error into a victory lap, right up until the FDA took the win back in public. Plus the company whose new HQ lasted about as long as its grand opening ribbon cutting

The week Taco Bell turned a parasite into a love letter

A lettuce scare that turned one brand into a customer favorite and left its supplier leading with the FDA's apology instead of the people who got sick — plus the chairman of the company that makes most of the world's AI memory, publicly arguing his own record prices down.

Taco Bell's statement blames everyone, politely

Taco Bell's very careful sentence, Taylor Farms' very loud silence, and the new Edelman number that says 70% of your readers assume you're lying anyway.

Meta's threat about leakers leaks

The leak Meta can't stop causing, and the letter IBM should've sent in February.

Games Done Quick's 3-hour apology