Gatorade punished for dissing water in video game
The settlement stems from the company’s free and award-winning mobile game “Bolt!” which came out in 2012 but is no longer listed in the iTunes store.
In the game, the fastest man alive, sprinter Usain Bolt, picks up gold coins as he races across the screen. He runs faster and gains fuel if he hits a Gatorade icon, but he slows down and loses fuel if he hits a water droplet.
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The complaint alleges that Gatorade violated California consumer protection laws by making misleading statements about water, according to [California attorney general Xavier] Becerra’s office.
“Making misleading statements is a violation of California law. But making misleading statements aimed at our children is beyond unlawful,” Becerra said in a statement. “It’s morally wrong and a betrayal of trust.
“Today’s settlement should make clear that the California Department of Justice will pursue false advertisers and hold them accountable,” he said.
One assumes cereal manufacturers are quaking in dread.
Come on, Earthquake! The sooner the Left Coast slides off into the ocean, the better.
Thirteen states have speech-limiting food disparagement laws, including that great bastion of lefty thinking; Texas!
As I recall, Oprah was sued in Texas for liable against beef because she mentioned something about mad cow disease on one of her shows.
“…making misleading statements aimed at our children is beyond unlawful…” So you’re gonna fire the teachers and outlaw their unions?
What’s the misleading statement exactly? I’m certainly not the fastest man alive (much closer to the slowest, in fact), but I have on occasion found it necessary to run. When I find it necessary to run through a water puddle I do, in fact, slow down out of a general desire to not slip and break my neck. On the other hand, while this has never actually happened to me, if someone were throwing Gatorade bottles at me, I’d probably run faster to get away from them…