The incident is a stark reminder to communicators about the dangers of making assumptions about facts from social media reports-and the need for careful crisis communications as part of a social media strategy. “Any consumers who notice their cereal box or bag has been tampered with, such as the clear tape that was found in this case, should contact us.”īut the damage might be done with the social media response from Cinnamon Toast Crunch’s handle. “We are waiting for the consumer to send us the package to investigate further,” Siemienas said. In a statement to USA TODAY, General Mills spokesperson Mike Siemienas said the company was still investigating but “can say with confidence that this did not occur at our facility.” What’s more, Karp describes himself as something of a superfan in an interview with TMZ about the incident, describing how he owns a Cinnamon Toast Crunch-themed shirt and sneakers.Īs the story began to make the rounds in traditional media outlets, General Mills’ crisis response congealed. This is the first I’ve heard from them since yesterday (when they said they were sending an envelope) and my new response. I plan on continuing full transparency for those concerned about their products. The sleuths of Twitter started concocting ideas about what the evidence could mean as users’ brains went into overdrive to connect the dots on this mysterious set of facts:Īnd another social media moment was enshrined in the digital firmament:Ĭinnamon Toast Crunch has so far been unable to steer the incident offline, and efforts to investigate have failed to satisfy a severely upset consumer: Here’s all my findings, which also now includes a weird little string? /mRDUhqG3I8 I was convinced to go back through the bag, since when I first noticed the shrimp tails, I freaked out and closed the box. Karp tweeted that further investigation of the contents of cereal box unveiled other freight objects, including some string and pieces of cereal with black dots baked into them. ![]() So they want me to send them the shrimp tails for a “closer look.” These are obviously shrimp tails, so I will be keeping one as evidence, as I now feel like Sandra Bullock in The Net. I wasn’t all that mad until you now tried to gaslight me? /rSLE60pvoy Ok, we’ll after further investigation with my eyes, these are cinnamon coated SHRIMP TAILS, you weirdos. The claim forced Karp to offer more photographic evidence of the revolting surprise he had discovered in his box of cereal-and made him angry enough to start a campaign to prove his claims. We assure you that there's no possibility of cross contamination with shrimp. ![]() Then the brand’s social media team made its big mistake:Īfter further investigation with our team that closely examined the image, it appears to be an accumulation of the cinnamon sugar that sometimes can occur when ingredients aren't thoroughly blended. Fair warning, I look different since eating your cereal today. GUYS – I am not sure I’m ready for another box!!! Jensen Karp, a comedian with some 99,000 followers on Twitter, was backed up by others online, including actor Seth Rogen, and his story quickly became an international sensation with Twitter users sharing their disgust.Ĭinnamon Toast Crunch tried to deploy a crisis response strategy that wasn’t prepared to handle Karp’s lucid, engaging social media storytelling. Ummmm – why are there shrimp tails in my cereal? (This is not a bit) /tTjiAdrnVp There’s something fishy going on with Cinnamon Toast Crunch.Īt least, that’s the takeaway of one consumer who purchased a box of the beloved cereal from his local California Costco, only to discover a couple of sugar-encrusted shrimp tails in his box.Īnd he had already eaten a bowl before discovering the secret ingredients. ![]() Editor’s note: This article is a re-run as part of our countdown of top stories from the past year.
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