*By Michael Teich*
Uber has spent millions of dollars on an ad campaign in which its chief executive, Dara Khosrowshahi, tries to win back customers' trust after the ride-hailing company was beset by scandals and a slumping reputation.
The ad was a departure for Uber, but a necessary one because "we're in an environment where people want to hate," said the Wall Street Journal reporter Suzanne Vranica.
Uber, Wells Fargo and Facebook, which all endured a backlash from customers related to corporate missteps, have spent more than $60 million recently to protect their public image, according to research from iSpot.
"You can’t discount trust," said Vranica in an interview Thursday with Cheddar. And though users may still be logging on to Facebook, their behavior could change as they lose faith in the platform.
"Long term, it will impede ability to attract advertising dollars," she said. "It takes a long time to evaluate to see if it's a problem. That's why they need to spend so much money."
The social media company's stock plummeted after it was reported that it failed to protect the private data of 87 million users exposed in the Cambridge Analytica data scandal. Facebook shares climbed back near all-time highs as investors' concerns appeared to wane after the company reported user growth in its last quarterly earnings that appeared to be unaffected by the scandal.
Vranica still warned, these are "long-term problems that could eat away at your brand" and "overall brand health really matters."
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/the-cost-of-regaining-customer-trust).
The Tony Awards on Sunday lured 4.85 million viewers to CBS, its largest broadcast audience in six years. CBS says Monday that Nielsen data shows the telecast — hosted by “Wicked” star Cynthia Erivo — scored a 38% increase over last year’s 3.53 million viewers. That’s the largest audience for the Tonys since 2019, when the telecast that year nabbed 5.4 million viewers and “Hadestown” was crowned best new musical. The latest version also had to compete with the second game of the NBA Finals, between the Thunder and Pacers,
After stumbling out of the starting gate in Big Tech’s pivotal race to capitalize on artificial intelligence, Apple tried to regain its footing Monday during a developers conference that focused mostly on incremental advances and cosmetic changes in its technology.
Six weeks before UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was gunned down outside a Manhattan hotel last December, Luigi Mangione mused about rebelling against “the deadly, greed fueled health insurance cartel” and expressed that killing the executive “conveys a greedy bastard that had it coming."
Shaquille O’Neal and Allen Iverson once clashed on the court in the 2001 NBA Finals, but now the basketball legends are joining forces to revive the Reebok brand they helped make iconic.
Midea is voluntarily recalling about 1.7 million of its popular U and U+ Smart air conditioners because pooled water in the units may not drain fast enough, leading to mold growth.
