Multiculturalism asserts itself on the greens
July 11, 2009
The great national golfing nightmare is over. And we have a Mexicana and a South Korean woman among others to thank.
It appears that after growing criticism the commissioner of the LPGA, Carolyn Bivens, will be stepping down. And according to the NY Times it seems Bivens’ decision was very much influenced by a letter requesting her resignation signed by 15 female golfing stars, including Mexican Lorena Ochoa and Korean Se Ri Pak.
Some of you may recall that last August Bivens proposed that foreign-born players be proficient in English or face suspension beginning in 2009. Well, not surprisingly, that didn’t sit too well with the many Korean players on the LPGA tour. And it didn’t sit too well with such great multiculturally-savvy marketers like State Farm. And it was under Bivens that the LPGA lost the most brilliant of multicultural marketers, McDonald’s.
It’s a shame that the first female commissioner of the LPGA turned out to be so multiculturally-inept, but I hope it serves as a lesson to the multiculturally-incompetent among our marketers and agencies (after all, Bivens came from one of the big “general market” media agencies).
Que viva Lorena!
