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AirTalk

The chasm between intention and outcome: Starbucks’ ‘Race Together’ campaign

A Starbucks snapshot taken on the Upper West Side in New York City on November 19, 2008. The company is under fire after launching it's "Race Together" campaign this week, sparking backlash on social media with the hash tag #RaceTogether.
A Starbucks snapshot taken on the Upper West Side in New York City on November 19, 2008. The company is under fire after launching it's "Race Together" campaign this week, sparking backlash on social media with the hash tag #RaceTogether.
(
Ed Yourdon/Flickr
)
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The chasm between intention and outcome: Starbucks’ ‘Race Together’ campaign

Starbucks’ new “Race Together” campaign wants baristas at its 4,700 stores to engage in conversations with customers about race in America. It didn’t take long for the Internet to react.

From the Washington Post to Twitter, everyone seems to have something to say about the coffee giant’s latest effort.

What do you think? Is something like this, however well-meaning, bound to fail? Or can it incite substantive conversation?

Guest:

Bryant Simon, author of "Everything But the Coffee: Learning about America from Starbucks" (University of California Press, 2011) and a professor of History at Temple University