There have been many unlikely partnerships in the past like the Coyote and the Badger, Newt Gingrich and Nancy Pelosi on Global Warming, and now Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) and the Susan G. Komen (SGK) for the Cure organization. This partnership between KFC and SGK has not been without controversy even though it has raised more than $4.2 Million for the cause, the single largest donation in the organization’s history. Throughout this experimental assignment, I will analyze the qualitative data posted on the various blog sites and will give the reader a better consumer perception of the alliance through the eyes of the survivors and patients of breast cancer as well as the Non-breast cancer patients and survivors. I will compare and contrast these perceptions and how they relate to cause-related marketing, cause-brand failure, and decision-making. The previously stated objectives will be covered by exploring the topics of “Pinkwashing”, Brand Implications, and Conflicting views on Association as they relate to this alliance and its qualitative analysis.

“Pink-Washing”
What is “pinkwashing”? Before exploring this topic, it is relevant to discuss the origin of this word when attempting to better understand it. “Pinkwashing” is a pejorative term derived from “greenwashing” and shares similarities. “Greenwashing” was coined by environmental activists to describe efforts by corporations to portray themselves as environmentally responsible in order to mask environmental wrongdoings (Davis, 1992). The term was originally confined to describing misleading instances of environmental advertising; however, as corporations’ efforts to portray themselves as environmentally righteous have diversified and multiplied, so have charges of “greenwashing”. Ultimately, the core goal of “greenwashing” is to give consumers the impression that the company is taking the