Crock-Pot isn’t the first product to suffer from a pop-culture pot shot.
Twitter is ablaze with users saying they’re going to toss out their slow cookers after a Crock-Pot was part of a big plot twist on NBC’s “This is Us” on Tuesday night.
Because of the code of “no spoilers” you’ll have to watch to find out exactly why. But the Jansen Corporation-owned device finds itself in bad company after the callout on one of the hottest shows on television.
Merlot sales dipped 2 percent after Paul Giamatti’s character in the popular wine-soaked 2004 flick “Sideways” dissed the vintage because his ex-wife liked it, according to a Sonoma State University study. Pinot noir, on the other hand, rhapsodized in the film as “the most haunting and brilliant and thrilling and subtle and ancient on the planet,” shot up 14 percent.
Following their villainous turn in the ’70s blockbuster “Jaws,” sharks were nearly hunted to extinction. The author of the book the story was based on later expressed regret for his role in turning opinion against the commercially fished sea creature.
And after comedian Patton Oswalt in 2007 made the late-night talk show rounds mocking the KFC “Famous Bowls” as a “failure pile in a sadness bowl,” the chain’s average sales per unit dipped, dropping from 994 million to a trough of 933 million. The CEO of KFC’s parent company addressed the issue later that year in an interview with Fast Company.
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But is it correlation, causation or coincidence? Other experts contend that merlot prices were already on the decline after growers planted too many merlot grapes following their ’90s boom. Art is subjective and so is life, especially when it imitates art.
Experts say any backlash the Crock-Pot brand is facing will be short-lived and mild.
The Levick crisis and reputation management firm analyzed the social media reaction and concluded that “all the responses are jocular; people aren’t taking this seriously,” CEO Richard Levick told NBC News.
Instances like the Crock-Pot twitter kerfuffle are “social media hit and runs,” Drew Kerr, president of Four Corners Communications, a public relations consultancy, said.
“Sometimes when these social media outrages happen they go for a day or two, people are outraged … and it’s on to the next thing,” Kerr said.
The Crock-Pot became a bit of a sensation in the ’70s as more women entered the workforce and it became a time-saving way for families to easily prepare a hot meal. Slow cookers have seen a resurgence in recent years with the Instant Pot, which combines aspects of a slow cooker with other features, becoming one of the surprise hot gadgets of 2017.
While the chance of an accident involving a slow cooker is low, according to the National Fire Protection Association, they recommend inspecting them for frayed or broken cords. More recent models of slow cookers also boast safety features like auto-shutoff timers and heat sensors.
Crock-Pot and its parent company didn’t respond to an NBC News request for comment, but some comments on their Facebook page are getting replies.
“We’re heartbroken over last night’s episode, too,” they replied to one user. “We’re innocent until proven guilty. Since the 1970s we have been providing families with quality and safe products, ask your parents if you don’t believe us.”