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The official White House social media account is under fire for posts that resemble something typically found on the internet forum 4chan. A post shared on February 14, styled like a Valentines card, read, “Roses are red, violets are blue, come here illegally and well deport you.” It has since been viewed 36.6 million times. While many of President Donald Trumps supporters praised the message, others condemned it as callous. I thought this was a parody account at first. Absolutely disgusting! one X user commented. Classless, another simply put. Happy Valentine's Day pic.twitter.com/6d7qmo7gtz— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 14, 2025 On February 18, another post tapped into the ASMR trendshort for “autonomous sensory meridian response,” a term for the tingling sensation some people experience in response to certain sounds or visuals. The video featured audio of a plane, chains clinking against the ground, handcuffs being fastened, and footsteps ascending a metal staircase. It was titled, ASMR: Illegal Alien Deportation Flight. ASMR: Illegal Alien Deportation Flight pic.twitter.com/O6L1iYt9b4— The White House (@WhiteHouse) February 18, 2025 X owner and Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) chief Elon Musk reposted the video writing, Haha, wow, accompanied by Frankenstein and gold medal emojis. Many commenters, however, were alarmed by the apparent trivialization of a serious humanitarian issue. And youre telling me this isnt a fascist dictatorship? Making ‘ASMR’ about a human being being deported is beyond cruel. Thats some cartoon type evil, one wrote. Another commented: As a European watching this reality show called ‘American Politics’ unfold, I didn’t think they could go any lower at this point. The White House posts signal a shift in tone and strategy from the norm for official accounts of those governing the country. Rather than maintaining a neutral, bureaucratic voice, the White Houses official X account now resembles that of a social media troll. In response to the backlash, White House spokesman Harrison Fields told The New York Times, President Trump is committed to using every direct line of communication to the American people. While the 2024 electionand the interminable discourse surrounding Kamala HQ and Brat summerproved there is room within politics for internet lingo, the question remains: Where should the line be drawn for an official government account?
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E-Commerce
A glance at the days headlines reveals a universal truth: Leadership matters. Whether uplifting and ethical or toxic and abusive, leaders profoundly shape our lives. And this is especially true on the job. Research consistently shows that leadership influences employees attitudes, behaviors and emotions, driving key organizational outcomes such as creativity, employee engagement, well-being and financial performance. Unfortunately, research also shows that supervisors abuse their employees far too often and then try to manage impressions to compensate for their bad behavior. But what happens when a leader tries to make up for past abuse by suddenly acting ethically? And do employees have to experience the abuse firsthand for it to hurt them? As professors who study management and whove heard horror stories of employees working under mercurial bosses we wanted to find answers. So we conducted a study, which was recently published in the Journal of Applied Psychology. Our research includes multiple samples of full-time employees in the U.S. and the United Kingdom. To begin, we surveyed 222 employees and 66 supervisors to gather insights into workplace leadership and work experiences. We focused on two contrasting leadership behaviors: ethical leadership and abusive supervision. We also conducted experiments with 400 people, presenting them with stories about managers who alternately display both ethical leadership and abusive supervision and asking them how they would respond. Across these studies, we found that employees who experience such oscillating leadership often end up worse off in terms of their emotional well-being and job performance than if they were consistently being abused. By going back and forth between abusive and ethical behaviors, leaders create greater confusion, leaving their employees emotionally exhausted. Instead of providing relief, acts of ethical leadership ironically serve to amplify the damage done by prior abusive behavior. Jekyll and Hyde leadership in practice As an example, consider Steve Jobs, the co-founder and chief executive officer of Apple for more than a decade until his death in 2011. While Jobs was an icon to many people, he reportedly swung between toxic and positive leadership behavior while dealing with subordinates. For example, when Jobs exacting standards werent met, he would reportedly storm into meetings and profanely berate the team responsible for not living up to his lofty expectations. Yet, despite these outbursts, he was also described as a leader who believed in his employees potential, expressing unwavering confidence in their abilities and empowering them to exceed their own expectations. This kind of unpredictable leadership can leave workers emotionally exhausted, wondering: Which version of my boss will show up today? Will this kindness last, or is it just a setup for another blow? Unsurprisingly, this isnt good for productivity. Employees value stability and predictability in their leaders. A supervisor who bounces between harsh criticism and warm praise creates an emotional roller coaster for the team. When employees see a supervisor as unpredictable, they experience more stress and emotional exhaustion, which hurts their job performance and willingness to share ideas. Interestingly, we found that workers dont even need to be directly targeted by an abusive supervisor to be affected; employees whose immediate supervisors get the Jekyll-and-Hyde treatment from their higher-ups suffer similar consequences. These negative reactions occur, in part, because employees begin to doubt that their immediate supervisors are able to effectively influence higher-level leaders. In other words, the psychological toll of Jekyll-and-Hyde leaders isnt limited to direct encounters but can also be experienced vicariously. How companies can banish Mr. Hyde The good news is that organizations can break this cycle and workers are likely to be less stressed and more productive when they do. Here are three steps every organization can take: Train leaders to manage stress without lashing out. High-pressure environments are prevalent these days, but abusive leader behavior doesnt have to be. Providing leaders with tools like emotional intelligence training and conflict resolution skills can help leaders navigate both personal and professional challenges more constructively. Address the abusive behavior directly. When abusive actions occur, ignoring them or asking the leader to be nicer next time isnt enough. Structured interventions like one-on-one coaching, counseling or formal sanctions are essential for generating real change. Employees need to see that the organization is living up to its stated values and ideals. Foster a culture of trust and accountability. Tools like 360-degree feedback reports which involve feedback from supervisors, peers and subordinates can help leaders gain deeper insight into their behaviors. These can be used not just for development, but also for heightened accountability. Creating a climate of psychological safety in which employees can report concerns without fear of retaliation is key to rebuilding trust. So is ensuring clear, consistent responses to reports of abusive supervision. Great leaders understand the power of trust and setting an example. Employees want leaders they can rely on, not ones who keep them guessing. So leaders should be wary about employing ethical leadership as a quick fix for past mistakes. Rather, its about showing up consistently, authentically, and with integrity every single day. For leaders at all levels, the takeaway is simple: Consistency fosters success. Organizations that prioritize stable, ethical leadership create workplaces where employees feel valued, supported and empowered to do their best work. John Sumanth is a James Farr Fellow & associate professor of management at Wake Forest University. Haoying Xu is an assistan professor of business at Stevens Institute of Technology. Sean Hannah is chair of business ethics and a professor of management at Wake Forest University School of Business at Wake Forest University. Sherry Moss is associate dean of MBA Programs at Wake Forest University School of Business at Wake Forest University. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.
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E-Commerce
An iconic eyewear brand has a new creative icon at its helm. Ray-Ban announced today that rapper and fashion trendsetter A$AP Rocky will be its first-ever creative director. In his new role, Rocky will lead Ray-Ban Studios, a sub label of Ray-Ban that it calls a creative hub celebrating self-expression. More broadly, hes tasked with reinventing and contemporizing the brand by overseeing creative projects including a new Blacked Out Collection, which will release in April. The collection redesigns iconic frames (think the Wayfarer and Clubmaster) with a brand-new black-out lens and gold-plated details. Today, we are welcoming A$AP Rocky into our family; hes a visionary artist and creator, Ray-Ban president Leonardo Maria Del Vecchio says in a statement. His ability to push the boundaries of the diverse worlds he explores aligns with the Ray-Ban DNA. We are reinforcing the brands values of innovation, pioneering spirit, and courage. Rocky has a history of wearing Ray-Bans. Most recently, in what is now seemingly a tell of the collaboration to come, Rocky wore Ray-Bans to his trial for two felony counts of assault with a semiautomatic firearm, which ended last week with a not guilty verdict. He also wore Ray-Bans to his first-ever fashion show American Sabotage last summer. The announcement follows the release of Rockys fourth album Dont be Dumb earlier this year. This isnt his first foray into fashion collaborations, either. The rapper, 36, has previously collaborated with JW Anderson, Guess, Puma, and Moncler. Rockys onboarding comes at a moment of growth for the eyewear brands parent company, EssilorLuxottica. The holding company acquired Supreme last July, and announced a long-term partnership with Meta last September. Time will tell if A$AP Rocky’s affiliation with Ray-Ban will have a positive knock-on effect for the Meta partnership. That depends on whether he can counter public perception of Mark Zuckerberg, who has a Midas touch of uncool and makes everything in his arm’s reach turn cringe, including the Ray-Ban wayfarers that are the center of the EssilorLuxottica-Meta smartglasses partnership. EssilorLuxottica saw group revenue up 9.4% in Q4, and has sold two million smartglasses since launch, according to its most recent quarterly report. Rockys creative leadership at Ray-Ban will extend beyond glasses design. Hell also have a hand in the brands creative campaigns and redesign its retail stores, signaling a pivot point and an overhaul of the brand and its public perception at large. The company wrote that Rocky joins in a critical time in the evolution of Ray-Ban, in its announcement. EssilorLuxottica did not respond to a request for additional comment by time of publication. Ive always admired Ray-Bans ability to stay true to its roots while constantly evolving, Rocky said in a statement. Im excited to be part of the strong heritage and develop the next chapter for an iconic brand like Ray-Ban.
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E-Commerce
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