In its recent protest against Facebook, ironically using Facebook itself, Greenpeace hasn’t gotten quite the response it often gets from the corporate giants it targets in its protest campaigns. That response? Immediate capitulation.
Usually, in an anti-corporate campaign, Greenpeace is accustomed to receiving acquiescence from the hapless companies that go into that NGO’s sights. So far at least, that hasn’t been the case in the Greenpeace vs. Facebook campaign under way. Per my previous posts on this campaign, Greenpeace is upset about Facebook’s selected location for a new server facility. Greenpeace maintains that the location is not energy efficient. Facebook maintains that the location is efficient from the perspective of their overall corporate energy profile and has, essentially, rebuffed any further initiatives from Greenpeace.
In response, Greenpeace has now come out with an annoying two-minute animation about how Mark Zuckerberg (the Facebook founder) built Facebook and how the company is supposedly powered by coal-fueled power plants.
I’ve watched the video. It is especially ridiculous and way below the usual cleverness of Greenpeace. To me, this sort of tactic appears childish, weak, and desperate. One would think that if Greenpeace had such a strong case against Facebook that the strength of their argument would shine through. “Silly little” videos such as this one just make their whole case seem ridiculous.
Hang in there, Facebook. If you believe your energy plan is the most efficient available, stick to your position and don’t acquiesce, like so many other corporations, to the “semantical terrorism” employed by Greenpeace. Doing so may actually make your energy plan less efficient. And that wouldn’t be good for anyone, except perhaps for Greenpeace.
