‘The Day Before’ shuts down after launching and fashion giant Zara hit with boycott after poorly timed ad campaign…this week in social change
Thred Media
An award-winning Gen Z-led consultancy agency helping brands and agencies to connect with today's youth.
Welcome back to another week of social change news!
Every seven days we give you the rundown on the latest Gen Z news. Whether it’s new European laws curbing the use of AI, Billie Eilish claiming Variety Magazine outed her, a Japanese restaurant reimagining elderly care, or discussing the Africa Horn’s climate refugee crisis, we’ve got it all right here.
Let’s get stuck into this week’s biggest social change stories.
First up, we took a look at how crisis actors and fake experts are weaponised to distract and undermine climate action by fossil fuel lobbyists. As part of an ongoing series, we’ve put together a handy playbook guide to help you make sense of COP28 and keep your wits about you as a sustainable, green-thinking citizen. Here is the full part five article of our series. You’ll be a crisis actor expert in no time.
Speaking of COP28, the biggest pledges from the world’s richest countries fall far short of the necessary funds to combat climate change. They have so far contributed a combined total of just over $700m. This is nowhere near enough to help the world’s most vulnerable nations. Want to learn more? You can read the full article right here.
These are fascinating stories, of course, but what about our main feature pieces of the week? Let’s jump straight into it.
Did you try and play ‘The Day Before’? Promised by developer FNTASTIC to be a massive online multiplayer shooter akin to blockbuster titles like ‘The Last Of Us’, the game turned out to be a giant scam. The company announced it was shutting down only four days after it released on Steam as an ‘early access’ title.
Before vanishing like a fart in the wind, the development team released an?announcement?on Monday citing ‘financial failure’ as the apparently unforeseen fatal blow. Any income generated during the game’s woefully short lifetime is now reportedly being used to pay off debts to partners.
Those who, despite the fishiest of smells, decided to chance their hand and spend $40 on the game are now left to wander a bland, buggy mess of a world which FNTASTIC cannot afford to patch.
The near universally negative feedback stemming from gaming journalists and outlets – including a diabolical 1 rating on?IGN?– is a far cry from the lofty expectations its reveal set back in summer 2022. Check out the full article here.
领英推荐
Meanwhile, fashion giant Zara has been hit with a boycott after a poorly timed ad campaign.
The Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip has now been going on for two months. During the last nine weeks, the horrific images and videos posted to social media by Palestinian journalists have caused millions of people – many of whom initially supported the IDF’s decision to retaliate against the events of October 7th?– to?change their tone.
In the eyes of many, Israel’s ‘right to defend itself’ has transformed into a mission to?demolish Gaza’s infrastructure?and to?ethnically cleanse Palestinians?from their occupied land. While protests calling for an immediate ceasefire have erupted all over the world, leaders with the power to force peace talks have either?voted against this move?or?stayed completely silent.
McDonald’s,?Burger King, and?Domino’s Pizza?have been hit with boycotts after the three companies offered free meals to IDF soldiers. The latest brand facing a similar backlash is fast fashion giant Zara, after posting a poorly timed campaign on the front page of its website.
Many believe the models in the photos, who are posed holding mannequins wrapped in white fabric and surrounded by statues with missing limbs, bear resemblance to the images pouring out of Gaza. Want to read the full story? Check it out on our website right here.
Don't forget to keep a tab open on?Thred.com?for more from our global Gen Z writing team every single day. If you want more updates and planet-positive ways to take action, sign up for our?email newsletter, and check out our youth empowerment opportunities through our?Change Maker Network?page.
Contact us:?[email protected]