Overshadowed by Controversy: Difference between revisions
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* 5G cellular technology also had its reputation tainted no thanks to the above-mentioned pandemic. The reason? [[Cloudcuckoolander]] [[Conspiracy Theorist]]s accusing the radio standard of somehow facilitating the spread of the virus. This got to the point where paranoid and gullible people bought into the canard and left comments blindly accusing 5G for causing the disease (even though there's substantial evidence to the contrary, and 5G coverage hasn't been that widespread yet even in areas where it was deployed), and some took it [[Up To Eleven]] by [[What an Idiot!|raiding]] cell sites and firebombing the masts to knock them offline. Unsurprisingly, those who attempted to do such an imbecilic act were arrested for their antics, and social media users joked about how they were unable to get cellular coverage as a result of such idiocy-induced terrorism. Not helping matters are charlatans who are quick to cash in on the scare by selling (phony) deterrents against 5G radio waves in the form of USB-OTG devices to be plugged on a cellphone, and those spreading [[Chain Letter]]s on Facebook and elsewhere alleging a sinister scheme linked to 5G and vaccines against COVID-19, sometimes using the "satanic panic" canard for added shock value.
** Such mass paranoia over cellular technologies are nothing new, however. Back when cellphones and text messaging started gaining mainstream adoption in the late 90s to early 2000s, fears about electromagnetic radiation emitted by cellular towers and cellphones themselves started circulating on the internet and through word of mouth, and some cashed in by selling so-called "anti-radiation" decals meant to be placed on cellphones, purportedly to mitigate the radiation coming from said devices.
* Speaking of vaccines, the anti-vaccination movement has made [[Sarcasm Mode|great strides]] in misinforming people about its supposed horrors, ranging from the now-discredited claim that they cause autism (which has since been considered an insult to those in the spectrum), to (understandable yet flawed) concerns about certain compounds such as [[wikipedia:Thiomersal and vaccines|Thiomersal]], and even the above-mentioned NWO/number of the beast fears like diabolical implants being surreptitiously diluted into said vaccine injections as well as accusing people like former Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist [[Bill Gates]] of initiating sinister mass-vaccination schemes to subjugate the entire human population. Such fears were crystallised in a number of incidents, notably the Dengvaxia controversy in the Philippines where a rash of deaths linked to the vaccines dissuaded parents from having their children vaccinated.
* The swastika used to be a positive symbol of good luck, only for the Nazis to adopt it as their insignia. Unless if you're Buddhist or a Jain, brandishing it could land you in hot water especially in Germany where [[No Swastikas|use of it]] along with other "unconstitutional symbols" is [[wikipedia:Strafgesetzbuch section 86a|banned]]. There are exceptions to this such as the use of swastikas in works of art like films and television programmes, though it was only until recently when video games are now allowed to display them so as long as it is done in an artistic or historical context, and even then this has to be reviewed on a case-to-case basis.
* IBM is arguably one of the foremost names in information technology, having pioneered the use of x86-based personal computers which became a ''de facto'' standard to this day. While they did cooperate with the United States and developed technologies as well as manufactured weapons for the Allied war effort, it could not however shake off their work with the Nazis through their German subsidiary ''Deutsche Hollerith Maschinen Gesellschaft'', or Dehomag, where their punch card technology was used to keep records of concentration camp detainees during the [[Holocaust]].
* As mentioned in the ''Toddlers and Tiaras'' example, child beauty pageants have earned something of a dubious reputation no thanks to controversies over age-appropriateness, working conditions and issues with sexualization of children participating in such contests. While some pageants are more or less
* Once well-established as a leading and prestigious authority in human and natural superlatives, the ''[[Guinness Book Of World Records]]'' has since been viewed with scorn and ridicule over the past few years at least in some circles:
** Critics of the ''Records'' contend that the organisation has become something of a vanity show especially with the change in business model due to the decline in book sales in favour of the Internet and social media. One could pay top dollar to have their names on print, even if it meant doing the most bizarre or useless stunt such as burping as loud as they could or wearing as many sweaters as possible just for the privilege.<ref>[https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2017/09/20/552203402/episode-795-is-record-breaking-broken Smith, Stacey Vanek; Saakashvili, Eduard (20 September 2017). Is Record Breaking Broken? National Public Radio.]</ref> Television talk show host [[John Oliver]] voiced similar criticism on his eponymous programme where he highlighted the corporate-driven "records" commissioned by General Mills for the world's longest line of tacos, as well as a more serious concern when Guinness was paid by [[Turkmenistan]], a country with a dubious human rights record, to confer to them a number of "world records" out of publicity's sake.
** Amongst gaming circles, the ''Records'' has also become something of a joke especially in light of the Billy Mitchell and Todd Rogers high score scandals. Mitchell in particular had his title stripped by Twin Galaxies due to issues as to the veracity of his records, but these were dubiously reinstated by Guinness shortly after. Their lack of expertise in games and overall reputation as an adjudicator of superlatives has led some gamers, one of them being speedrunning commentator Karl Jobst, to call for Guinness to stay out of video gaming as the community has already established reputable authorities to moderate and verify gaming records.
** A number of categories and records were also retired due to ethical and safety concerns, particularly with food and more dangerous stunts. The "youngest mother" record in particular was removed out of respect for a South American mother whose [[Squick|childhood pregnancy]] was an unfortunate story of its own.
* Toyota's reputation took a hit when a scandal broke out from a now-infamous 911 call of a man and his family panicking as they were trying to put their Toyota to stop to no avail, crashing into another car and falling into a ravine, resulting in the death of all passengers. This and several other incidents prompted the Japanese automaker to issue a mandatory recall of affected models, along with investigations and hearings from American legislators seeking to probe on the rash of incidents involving Toyotas as well as a tearful apology from president and CEO Akio Toyoda.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ziGfQyCXiU4 Toyota chief gets emotional]</ref> A number of possible factors were investigated, among them a faulty floor mat, the pedal mechanism itself and software errors, though driver error and complacency has also been blamed particularly from the elderly whose judgement may be impaired or those who aren't easily acquainted and thus confused by new vehicles.<ref>[https://www.manufacturing.net/automotive/blog/13110434/the-2009-toyota-accelerator-scandal-that-wasnt-what-it-seemed The 2009 Toyota Accelerator Scandal That Wasn’t What It Seemed]</ref> Many of those who have panicked over a car that had gone rouge did not for a second think about turning off the ignition or shifting to neutral (which would have outright destroyed the transmission but saved the occupants from more serious harm), and most of these incidents occurred on automatic transmission cars, which most Americans are far more accustomed to compared to manual transmission cars. Also criticised was the intense media coverage about the scandal, with periodicals and auto magazines faulting mainstream media outlets for [[Strawman News Media|"overblown"]] disproportionate coverage and what was seen as unfair demonizing at Toyota's expense.
* Junípero Serra was praised for establishing Franciscan missions in and around what was then Spanish-occupied California, and was beatified by [[The Pope|Pope John Paul II]] on 25 September 1988 in the [[Vatican City]]. His missionary work was however tainted and criticised especially in later years by Native American groups who accused the priest of genocide, subjugation and forced conversion of Indigenous American groups into Catholicism. Such was the outrage that several monuments erected in his honour were either [[Off with His Head|decapitated]] or otherwise desecrated in protest of Serra's alleged atrocities. Other Native Americans however were more positive towards Serra and his canonisation to sainthood, and had no ill feelings towards his missions in California.
* Photobucket used to be the go-to place to upload albums upon albums of images and videos for those who need to embed images on a website or forum but don't have their own web space to host them to. But not only was the $399 subscription fee–first implemented in 2017 and required for users to embed images–tantamount to extortion (they later changed it to $4.48 to $11.48 monthly, but still...), it was also seen as a ''nightmare'' for internet historians, archivists and those who had years if not decades worth of irreplaceable images now replaced with watermarked versions due to Photobucket's draconian business model. This ultimately cemented Photobucket's contemporary reputation as a now-washed up and has-been image host especially as the likes of Imgur have overshadowed it.
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