The Procter & Gamble Company has been the target of a long-standing rumor linking them with Satanism. A rumor signifying that the company’s logo was a sign of satanic association urged a Christian boycott of dozens of Procter’s Products. The rumors essentially rooted from Procter’s 132-year-old trademark, which shows the Man in the Moon and 13 stars representing the original colonies, is a symbol of Satanism and Devil worship. The rumors became so extensive and well-known that the company had to go to court to clear its name. Procter & Gamble took a variety of approaches to handling the charges by filing lawsuits that took years to resolve.
Individuals in the Middle Western states indicated they heard that the Procter & Gamble Company was owned by the Rev. Sun Myung Moon’s followers. In November 1980, Procter felt compelled to answer the charges by writing to news organizations in those states. In December 1981, there were suddenly 1,152 queries, by the company’s tally, mainly from the West Coast, and the focus shifted from the Moon church to the Devil.
Many have reported hearing that Procter’s ”owner” had appeared on a television talk show where he admitted selling his soul to the Devil in order to gain the company’s success. Anonymous fliers, misspelling the company’s name, began to appear at supermarkets. ”Proctor & Gamble,” one said, ”announced on the Phil Donahue Show that they contribute 10% of their earnings to the Satanic Religion (which is Devil worship).” There were reports of ministers, mainly in small Fundamentalist churches, attacking Procter from the pulpit and advising their congregations to boycott its products.
The Term Paper on Best managed companies from 3 Companies
The industry that has been chosen for this report id the fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) industry in which the household and personal products have been chosen. The three companies that have been chosen for the analysis are Unilever, Procter & Gamble and Johnson & Johnson. The purpose of the report is to identify the best company out of the three based on various factors which includes ...
Due to the doubtful results of the news media campaign, John Smale, Procter’s president, decided on a less public form of attack. The company wrote to local clergy and enclosed testaments of faith from prominent religious leaders, including preachers who led an earlier attack on Procter for sponsoring television shows of what they regarded as questionable morality. A church-based conservative political action group, led by The Rev. Jerry Falwell, leader of Moral Majority, wrote that he had talked with Procter’s chairman stating, “I am certain neither he nor his company is associated in any way with Satanism or Devil worship.”
Procter took formal action after a great deal of uncertainties about how to battle the rumors. The company’s claim was based on the Lanham Act, which prohibits unfair competition and false advertising. Most of the leads to ministers had evaporated so libel suits were filed against seven individuals for spreading ”false and malicious” rumors. According to Procter, all but one of the defendants sells products for competing consumer-goods companies. There was no evidence that companies were spreading this rumor nor is it clear that they were economically inspired. Most of the defendants denied the charges or said they were convinced the rumors were false.
Procter is not the only company to have fallen siege to rumors but the rumors have been more enduring at Procter, and the company’s course – to go not only to news organizations and the clergy for help, but also to the courts – has been more aggressive. After a court process that dragged for seventeen years, P & G was awarded over $19 million in damages.