Fighting That Old Devil Rumor Analysis

In “Fighting That Old Devil Rumor” by Sandra Salmans, Procter and Gamble was accused of being a company of devil worshippers because of their logo. Several Christians boycotted Procter and Gamble, and the company had to file a lawsuit against many people for starting rumors that were damaging them. The logo actually caused Procter and Gamble to do everything necessary to prove that the rumors were untrue. They even contacted the media to prove themselves.
The Procter and Gamble logo was rumored to be the mark of the devil. The logo actually meant “The man on the moon and the 13 stars representing the original colonies” (356). Salmans quotes one customer, Faye Dease, who says “when a mirror is held up to the logo, the curlicues in the man’s beard become 666-the sign of the Antichrist” (Salmans 357). Mrs. Dease also proceeded to argue “If it causes controversy, I don’t see why they have it” (Salmans 357). Salmans cites a woman, Cathy Gebing an employee of Procter and Gambles consumer service department, who said, answering phone calls all day, “No, sir, that’s a false rumor…that’s our trademark, we’ve had it about 100 years” (356). Procter and Gamble was stuck with the problem of trying to gain the confidence of their customers back. They went public to news companies, figuring the best was to convince them was through the media. When that didn’t work, they even tried to reach out to popular religious leaders. Reverend Jerry Falwell even came out publicly about his conversations with Procter and Gambles chairman, “I am certain neither he nor his company is associated in any way with Satanism or devil worship” (Salmans 358). When a Reverend of his stature explains that he does not believe the rumors, people ordinarily will listen. That should have…show more content…
“Fighting That Old Devil Rumor.” Writing and Reading Across the Curriculum. Ed. Laurence Behrens and Leonard J. Rosen. 12th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. 356-59.