What We’re Reading is a monthly roundup of current news, commentary, challenges, and trends that impact our industry and clients. This month, our team focused on how brand trust is built, tested, and sometimes undermined across public relations, employee communications, crisis response, and digital strategy. Highlights included brand expansion and identity questions at Claire’s and Everlane, Microsoft’s internal AI-era reset, Spirit’s shutdown communications, and Spotify’s quick reversal after user backlash.
Public Relations
Claire’s closed hundred of stores. Now the tween mall brand is turning up in locations you’d never expect – Natasha Etzel, Fast Company
“Claire’s expansion reflects a broader shift of meeting consumers where they’re at. While that increases visibility, it also changes how the brand shows up day to day. It’s a reminder that as brands expand into more accessible channels, they need to stay consistent in how they look and communicate so added convenience doesn’t come at the expense of their brand identity.” – Emma Smits
Everlane is the latest beloved Millennial brand that’s selling out to stay alive – Allison Morrow, CNN
“Everlane, a brand built on ‘radical transparency,’ aligning with fast fashion brand Shein is a sharp reminder that messaging alone doesn’t hold up when actions don’t match. Everlane spent years earning trust through its values, and moves like this risk unraveling that without a clear explanation. When brands are built on purpose, any shift needs to be communicated early and honestly—or people will fill in the gaps themselves.” – Lindsay Erickson
Reputation Management
Can OpenAI’s ‘Master of Disaster’ Fix AI’s Reputation Crisis? – Maxwell Zeff, WIRED
“Public perception of AI may be one of its biggest challenges. Even with the widespread use of tools like ChatGPT and Claude, more people are viewing AI negatively, and that skepticism is only increasing. In this article, it’s interesting to read about OpenAI’s communications approach to recalibrate its messaging, shifting away from more alarmist takes on job loss and toward a more balanced message that acknowledges concerns while offering real solutions.” – Haley Hartmann
Lululemon Settles Dispute With Founder – Suzanne Kapner and Lauren Thomas, The Wall Street Journal
“This long simmering boardroom drama between Lululemon and its Founder/former CEO provides a case study on what happens when a company loses the narrative with its own founder. This isn’t just about managing a dissident shareholder; it demonstrates the compounding reputational cost of unresolved stakeholder tension when it goes public. Lululemon was in a unique position of having to defend itself against both the strategic critiques but also the resurfacing of the toxic comments previously made by its most visible critic. When a founder or high-profile insider becomes a sustained public antagonist, silence and legal posturing aren’t a sufficient communications strategy. Companies need to get ahead of the narrative early, draw clear lines between legitimate governance concerns and inflammatory commentary, and give stakeholders a credible alternative narrative to rally around before the opposition defines the terms of the debate.” – Andrew Moyer
The Met Gala raised a record $42 million as Silicon Valley picked up the tab—and as celebs protested Jeff Bezos’ sponsoring of the event – Catherina Gioino, Fortune
“The 2026 Met Gala raised a record of $42 million, led by Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Bezos, the first tech figures, rather than a fashion house, to serve as lead sponsors. However, the reputation outcome was dim. Protesters lined the sidewalks, celebrities declined invitations, and the sponsorship itself became the headline. For any organization or public entity that uses a philanthropic association as a reputational tool, Jeff and Lauren Bezos serve as a reminder that cultural legitimacy isn’t purchased; it’s earned. The more polarizing the figure, the more the institution or event absorbs the controversy.” –Abby Ruth
Brand Reputations Rebound in 2026 Axios Harris Poll 100 – Sara Fischer, Axios
“Every year the Axios Harris Poll 100 gives us a useful gut check on where brands are actually landing with the American public, and this year’s findings are worth paying attention to. More than three-quarters of the 100 most visible companies improved their reputation scores year over year, in a year that felt anything but stable. The through-line among top performers wasn’t a brilliant PR campaign. It was consistency—brands that showed up with tangible value and didn’t make news for the wrong reasons. The takeaway isn’t complicated: reputation is built through decisions, not declarations. Companies that treat it as an operational discipline—something owned across the entire organization, not just managed by communications after the fact—are the ones that come out ahead.” – Paige Borgman
Employee Communications
“1 in five workers said they felt pressured to compromise their ethics” – Lara Ewen, HR Dive
“I was struck by two things as I read this article: one, how little attention the subject of corporate ethics has been getting of late, as other topics such as AI and DEI have taken center stage. It’s crucial that companies not lose sight of this important subject. The other: I’m wondering how many respondents are conflating their personal values with ethics. Is the “wrongdoing” they are seeing truly that – or just corporations not fully aligning with employees’ values? I imagine it’s a mix.” – Nick Kalm
Microsoft’s AI reboot is creating a new inner circle around Satya Nadella – Ashley Stewart, Business Insider
“As the AI race accelerates, Microsoft is rethinking not just its technology, but how decisions get made. A new Business Insider article highlights how CEO Satya Nadella is dismantling the company’s long-standing senior leadership model in favor of smaller, flatter teams positioned closer to engineering and product, a shift designed to speed up decision-making and better compete with more agile rivals. The reset reflects a broader reality for legacy companies: scale can be a disadvantage in the AI era, prompting Microsoft to adopt a more startup-like mindset, encouraging input from more junior employees, expecting leaders to be more hands-on, and pushing for faster execution across the business. It’s also a cultural shift, with executives being asked to fully commit to the company’s AI transformation as the stakes, and expectations, continue to rise.” – Jenny Cummings
Crisis Communications
Laid off Spirit flight attendant reacts to news of airline shutting down – AP News
“The Spirit Airlines shutdown abruptly affected travelers all over the country, not to mention roughly 17,000 workers who lost their jobs. Company closures are never easy to manage, as there are multiple stakeholders who will be negatively impacted. Nevertheless, a company’s employees are its most important asset, and news like this warrants a thoughtful announcement, rather than just a notification that all flights are canceled and the business is closing its doors. No matter the company update, good or bad, communications leaders should always consider their internal stakeholders first, because how a company treats its people in a moment of crisis says more about its values than any external statement ever could.” – Catherine Wycklendt
CDC’s acting director says hantavirus is not “a five-alarm fire bell” – Caitlin Yilek, CBS News
“This article reflects the post-COVID communications tightrope—clearly working to differentiate hantavirus as far less transmissible while avoiding unnecessary panic, emphasizing that it’s ‘very different than COVID’ and not a ‘five-alarm fire bell’ situation. However, this approach shows a growing challenge that clear, fact-based messaging can still leave people unsure if it isn’t backed up with regular updates and simple guidance, as audiences now expect both reassurance and consistent, transparent communication, even when the risk is low.” – Grace DuFour
Digital & Social Media Strategy
Writers Are Going to Extremes to Prove They Didn’t Use AI – Te-Ping Chen, The Wall Street Journal
“Writers are deliberately adding typos and slang to their work just to prove they’re human. The problem isn’t the tool—it’s that most AI content has nothing to say because nobody stopped to figure out what they think. The ones who come out ahead won’t be the ones disguising AI. They’ll be the ones who can read the room, connect the dots, and translate what’s happening in the world into something that means something to their audience.” – Kristin Monroe
Spotify Says Disco-Ball Icon, Which Prompted Massive User Backlash, Will Go Away Next Week as Planned – Todd Spangler, Variety
“While Spotify is a widely known brand, the backlash the brand received for changing their app icon to a glitter disco ball is a prime example of why branding matters. Although it was a clever idea to celebrate a milestone anniversary, Spotify made the right choice to recognize the criticism and remedy the situation by switching back to the logo users know and love. This is a good lesson for Spotify that brand consistency is key to maintaining stakeholder trust.” – Emily Schultz
New Surgeon general’s advisory raises alarm about screen time – Jacqueline Howard, CNN
“It’s not news that too much screen time is bad for kids (and adults) but the inflection point we’re quickly approaching begs for ideas, solutions, and new (old?) communication mediums. Leaders in childcare and education will start planning now for ways to engage their audiences in analog communication formats to better adapt for a future that will increasingly scrutinize screen time. Screens will never disappear, but those who demonstrate adaptability in communication and media, will win.” – Kate O’Neil