rebranding

[Jonathan Lighter]

And not just one's "public" image.

CNN advises that people who've lost their jobs may need to "retrain,"
"rebrand," and "redefine" themselves.

JL

On Fri, Jun 3, 2011 at 10:04 AM, Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at gmail.com> wrote:
> ---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Eric Nielsen <ericbarnak at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: rebranding
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> I guess "Chicken Little" ("The Space Merchants", Pohl and Kornbluth) has
> arrived.
>
> http://phronesisaical.blogspot.com/2006/06/chicken-little.html
>
> Eric
>
> On Fri, Jun 3, 2011 at 9:29 AM, Charles C Doyle <cdoyle at uga.edu> wrote:
>
>> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
>> -----------------------
>> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
>> Poster:       Charles C Doyle <cdoyle at UGA.EDU>
>> Subject:      Re: rebranding
>>
>> -------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>>
>> Many readers will be familiar with the "urban legend" regarding the
>> rebranding of Kentucky Fried Chicken as KFC.  The aim was not to eliminate
>> the opprobrius "fried" but rather to avoid the word "chicken"--which,
>> according to (instrusive) government regulations, must designate a a living,
>> breathing, feathered, two-winged, two-lfooted, one-backed, one-necked fowl.
>>  You see, the corporation is now raising hydroponic pseudo-birds, without
>> feathers or wings or feet or backs or necks or heads or entrials--just the
>> choice and profitable parts of the fryer.
>>
>>
>> --Charlie
>>
>> ________________________________________
>> From: American Dialect Society [ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] on behalf of
>> Margaret Lee [mlee303 at YAHOO.COM]
>> Sent: Friday, June 03, 2011 4:32 AM
>>
>>
>> KFC was also advertising a=A0few years ago as Kitchen Fresh
>> Chicken.=0A=0A-=
>> -Margaret Lee=0A=0A>> >Kentucky Fried Chicken --> KFC (to avoid the
>> referen=
>> ce to "fried" food)=0A>=0A> Some of these abbreviations, like the above
>> cou=
>> ple, overlap with the=0A> more general practice of euphemistic distancing
>> b=
>> y initialism=0A> extending to the rebranding of non-brands, as in V.D. and
>> =
>> STD/STI=0A> (discussed here recently), along with E.D., P.E. (not the gym
>> k=
>> ind),=0A> and now in commercials Low T.=A0 I like to think of these as
>> plai=
>> n=0A> brown wrapper initialisms.=0A>=0A> LH=0A>=0A>
>> -----------------------=
>>
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>>
>
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