Latest news with #publicity
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
New Astronomer CEO Finds Silver Lining in Coldplay Kiss-Cam Scandal
The interim CEO of Astronomer—the company at the heart of the kiss cam CEO scandal—has found a silver lining to all the publicity. In a LinkedIn post made Monday afternoon titled 'Moving Forward at Astronomer,' Pete DeJoy wrote that the public scrutiny of Astronomer has been 'unusual and surreal.' However, he argued that the scandal came with its own set of benefits. 'The events of the past few days have received a level of media attention that few companies—let alone startups in our small corner of the data and AI world—ever encounter,' the new CEO wrote. 'While I would never have wished for it to happen like this, Astronomer is now a household name.' DeJoy also wrote that 'at Astronomer, we have never shied away from challenges ... and each time we've emerged stronger.' Last Wednesday, then-Astronomer CEO Andy Byron was caught canoodling with the company's chief people officer, Kristin Cabot, on the jumbo screen at a Coldplay concert in Massachusetts. Both are married and immediately shied away from their unexpected kiss-cam feature. In the wake of the incident—which has sparked spoofs from baseball mascots and TV show hosts—Byron resigned, and the company's board installed DeJoy as interim CEO over the weekend. Cabot's fate at the company is unclear. The new CEO has a point about the company's boost in name recognition. According to Google data, 'astronomer' has been searched more times in the last seven days than it has since data collection began in 2004—causing some to speculate that the scandal was actually an ingenious marketing ploy. One tech CEO even joked on social media in a since-deleted tweet that Byron should have received a raise. 'Without this viral moment, I'd never know that Astronomer is used by enterprise clients to manage Apace Airflow,' Flexport CEO Ryan Petersen wrote. DeJoy said in his LinkedIn post that he has 'proudly poured [his] entire professional life' into building Astronomer, where he was formerly the chief product officer. He helped co-found the company in 2017 after graduating from college. Earlier this year, the company raised almost $100 million from a group of investors. DeJoy is surely hoping that the kiss-cam scandal doesn't disrupt the company's meteoric path in the field. Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
All publicity is good publicity: How Astronomer's viral moment could be a 'blessing in disguise'
A 'kiss cam' video appeared to show Astronomer's CEO embracing the firm's head of HR. The incident went viral around the world and led to CEO Andy Byron resigning. It's not the kind of publicity Astronomer would likely have hoped for, but it could benefit the firm. All eyes this week have been on a once-little-known tech company called Astronomer. While it's not been the kind of attention Astronomer would likely have hoped for, it's been said that all publicity is good publicity, and some public relations experts who spoke to Business Insider said the newfound fame could, ultimately, benefit the firm. The viral moment that catapulted the data company into the global spotlight took place at a Coldplay concert near Boston on Wednesday, when a "kiss cam" appeared to show then-Astronomer CEO Andy Byron embracing the company's head of human resources, Kristin Cabot. After spotting themselves on the big screen, the clearly panicked pair attempted to dodge the camera, prompting Coldplay front man Chris Martin to speculate that they were "having an affair or they're just very shy." The clip shot around the world and fueled a torrent of memes and internet sleuthing. Major brands like Netflix and even the Phillie Phanatic got in on the viral opportunity. Local CEO caught CHEATING at Phillies game?! — Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 19, 2025 Ryan McCormick, cofounder of Goldman McCormick, a public relations firm in New York, described it as a possible "blessing in disguise." "The real silver lining is that if this company is doing something truly innovative and they're doing something truly groundbreaking, the likelihood of someone finding them has increased substantially," McCormick told BI. "In the short term, they're embedded in controversy, but they're going to have people looking at them in a way they've never done before. I think that they'll probably come out OK." In a statement on Friday, Astronomer said its leaders were "expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability" and that it had launched a "formal investigation" into the incident. It added that Byron had been placed on leave. On Saturday, it said the exec had resigned. McCormick said Byron's departure would create some distance between the viral drama and the company. "I think they took the high road. They did what needed to be done, which was probably a hard decision," McCormick said. "If I were an investor or employee at that company, I would feel pretty confident." The company also used its Saturday statement to draw attention to its work. "Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space," it said. "While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not." Mike Fahey, the founder and CEO of Fahey Communications, told BI that this showed the company was making "a concerted effort to redirect the narrative to where it is favorable." "Astronomer is fighting back, working to position its offerings and overall customer experience as strong and reliable," he said, adding that the company "now has more eyes on it than ever before." But the New York-based firm had initially remained silent as the social media storm gathered force and users flooded its channels with comments, which Fahey said was a mistake. "The timing of the statement was notably delayed," he said of Astronomer's Friday announcement. "The absence of official communication created a void quickly filled by rumors, fake statements, and memes that spread widely on social media." One viral post included a fake apology letter attributed to Byron that featured a lyric from a Coldplay song. It was widely assumed to be real and picked apart relentlessly online. Astronomer said Friday that Byron had not made any statement and that "reports saying otherwise are all incorrect." Kristi Piehl, founder and CEO of Media Minefield, said the company made the same mistake as the pair on the "kiss cam." "The way that they reacted online and on social media is exactly how the two people involved reacted. When the camera hit them, they hid," Piehl said. "The first impression is so important. And the company allowed the first impression to be social media, the internet, and strangers." Deirdre Latour, the founder of Rebellis Communications, also suggested the company had gotten it wrong with its initial silence. "This is just the worst version of PR malpractice that you can see from a company," she said. "They are letting this terribly worded statement, blaming Coldplay and others, fester out in the marketplace." She added that the situation was "easy to fix" and that an internal memo should have been sent to employees addressing the incident. Representatives for Astronomer did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
All publicity is good publicity: How Astronomer's viral moment could be a 'blessing in disguise'
A 'kiss cam' video appeared to show Astronomer's CEO embracing the firm's head of HR. The incident went viral around the world and led to CEO Andy Byron resigning. It's not the kind of publicity Astronomer would likely have hoped for, but it could benefit the firm. All eyes this week have been on a once-little-known tech company called Astronomer. While it's not been the kind of attention Astronomer would likely have hoped for, it's been said that all publicity is good publicity, and some public relations experts who spoke to Business Insider said the newfound fame could, ultimately, benefit the firm. The viral moment that catapulted the data company into the global spotlight took place at a Coldplay concert near Boston on Wednesday, when a "kiss cam" appeared to show then-Astronomer CEO Andy Byron embracing the company's head of human resources, Kristin Cabot. After spotting themselves on the big screen, the clearly panicked pair attempted to dodge the camera, prompting Coldplay front man Chris Martin to speculate that they were "having an affair or they're just very shy." The clip shot around the world and fueled a torrent of memes and internet sleuthing. Major brands like Netflix and even the Phillie Phanatic got in on the viral opportunity. Local CEO caught CHEATING at Phillies game?! — Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 19, 2025 Ryan McCormick, cofounder of Goldman McCormick, a public relations firm in New York, described it as a possible "blessing in disguise." "The real silver lining is that if this company is doing something truly innovative and they're doing something truly groundbreaking, the likelihood of someone finding them has increased substantially," McCormick told BI. "In the short term, they're embedded in controversy, but they're going to have people looking at them in a way they've never done before. I think that they'll probably come out OK." In a statement on Friday, Astronomer said its leaders were "expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability" and that it had launched a "formal investigation" into the incident. It added that Byron had been placed on leave. On Saturday, it said the exec had resigned. McCormick said Byron's departure would create some distance between the viral drama and the company. "I think they took the high road. They did what needed to be done, which was probably a hard decision," McCormick said. "If I were an investor or employee at that company, I would feel pretty confident." The company also used its Saturday statement to draw attention to its work. "Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space," it said. "While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not." Mike Fahey, the founder and CEO of Fahey Communications, told BI that this showed the company was making "a concerted effort to redirect the narrative to where it is favorable." "Astronomer is fighting back, working to position its offerings and overall customer experience as strong and reliable," he said, adding that the company "now has more eyes on it than ever before." But the New York-based firm had initially remained silent as the social media storm gathered force and users flooded its channels with comments, which Fahey said was a mistake. "The timing of the statement was notably delayed," he said of Astronomer's Friday announcement. "The absence of official communication created a void quickly filled by rumors, fake statements, and memes that spread widely on social media." One viral post included a fake apology letter attributed to Byron that featured a lyric from a Coldplay song. It was widely assumed to be real and picked apart relentlessly online. Astronomer said Friday that Byron had not made any statement and that "reports saying otherwise are all incorrect." Kristi Piehl, founder and CEO of Media Minefield, said the company made the same mistake as the pair on the "kiss cam." "The way that they reacted online and on social media is exactly how the two people involved reacted. When the camera hit them, they hid," Piehl said. "The first impression is so important. And the company allowed the first impression to be social media, the internet, and strangers." Deirdre Latour, the founder of Rebellis Communications, also suggested the company had gotten it wrong with its initial silence. "This is just the worst version of PR malpractice that you can see from a company," she said. "They are letting this terribly worded statement, blaming Coldplay and others, fester out in the marketplace." She added that the situation was "easy to fix" and that an internal memo should have been sent to employees addressing the incident. Representatives for Astronomer did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
All publicity is good publicity: How Astronomer's viral moment could be a 'blessing in disguise'
A 'kiss cam' video appeared to show Astronomer's CEO embracing the firm's head of HR. The incident went viral around the world and led to CEO Andy Byron resigning. It's not the kind of publicity Astronomer would likely have hoped for, but it could benefit the firm. All eyes this week have been on a once-little-known tech company called Astronomer. While it's not been the kind of attention Astronomer would likely have hoped for, it's been said that all publicity is good publicity, and some public relations experts who spoke to Business Insider said the newfound fame could, ultimately, benefit the firm. The viral moment that catapulted the data company into the global spotlight took place at a Coldplay concert near Boston on Wednesday, when a "kiss cam" appeared to show then-Astronomer CEO Andy Byron embracing the company's head of human resources, Kristin Cabot. After spotting themselves on the big screen, the clearly panicked pair attempted to dodge the camera, prompting Coldplay front man Chris Martin to speculate that they were "having an affair or they're just very shy." The clip shot around the world and fueled a torrent of memes and internet sleuthing. Major brands like Netflix and even the Phillie Phanatic got in on the viral opportunity. Ryan McCormick, cofounder of Goldman McCormick, a public relations firm in New York, described it as a possible "blessing in disguise." "The real silver lining is that if this company is doing something truly innovative and they're doing something truly groundbreaking, the likelihood of someone finding them has increased substantially," McCormick told BI. "In the short term, they're embedded in controversy, but they're going to have people looking at them in a way they've never done before. I think that they'll probably come out OK." In a statement on Friday, Astronomer said its leaders were "expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability" and that it had launched a "formal investigation" into the incident. It added that Byron had been placed on leave. On Saturday, it said the exec had resigned. McCormick said Byron's departure would create some distance between the viral drama and the company. "I think they took the high road. They did what needed to be done, which was probably a hard decision," McCormick said. "If I were an investor or employee at that company, I would feel pretty confident." The company also used its Saturday statement to draw attention to its work. "Before this week, we were known as a pioneer in the DataOps space," it said. "While awareness of our company may have changed overnight, our product and our work for our customers have not." Mike Fahey, the founder and CEO of Fahey Communications, told BI that this showed the company was making "a concerted effort to redirect the narrative to where it is favorable." "Astronomer is fighting back, working to position its offerings and overall customer experience as strong and reliable," he said, adding that the company "now has more eyes on it than ever before." But the New York-based firm had initially remained silent as the social media storm gathered force and users flooded its channels with comments, which Fahey said was a mistake. "The timing of the statement was notably delayed," he said of Astronomer's Friday announcement. "The absence of official communication created a void quickly filled by rumors, fake statements, and memes that spread widely on social media." One viral post included a fake apology letter attributed to Byron that featured a lyric from a Coldplay song. It was widely assumed to be real and picked apart relentlessly online. Astronomer said Friday that Byron had not made any statement and that "reports saying otherwise are all incorrect." Kristi Piehl, founder and CEO of Media Minefield, said the company made the same mistake as the pair on the "kiss cam." "The way that they reacted online and on social media is exactly how the two people involved reacted. When the camera hit them, they hid," Piehl said. "The first impression is so important. And the company allowed the first impression to be social media, the internet, and strangers." Deirdre Latour, the founder of Rebellis Communications, also suggested the company had gotten it wrong with its initial silence. "This is just the worst version of PR malpractice that you can see from a company," she said. "They are letting this terribly worded statement, blaming Coldplay and others, fester out in the marketplace." She added that the situation was "easy to fix" and that an internal memo should have been sent to employees addressing the incident. Representatives for Astronomer did not respond to a request for comment from Business Insider. Read the original article on Business Insider Solve the daily Crossword
CNN
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- CNN
Company launches internal investigation after viral Coldplay video
Astronomer, the tech company that found itself launched into the public eye after its CEO was spotted on a Jumbotron video at a Coldplay concert earlier this week embracing an employee, issued a statement about the matter via LinkedIn. 'Our leaders are expected to set the standard in both conduct and accountability,' the statement said in part, adding that the company's board of directors 'has initiated a formal investigation into this matter and we will have additional details to share very shortly.' The statement also addressed incorrect information circulating on the internet in the day following the video's release, including a misidentification of a third person seen in the clip, and a parody X account that falsely claimed to have a statement from the CEO. Andy Byron, the chief executive officer of New York-based Astronomer, was spotted on a Jumbotron screen at a Coldplay concert at Gillette Stadium in Massachusetts on Wednesday, embracing Kristin Cabot, the company's chief people officer, who oversees the organization's human resources. Coldplay was performing 'The Jumbotron Song' when the camera turned to a man and woman cuddling as they watched the stage. The two quickly separated and attempted to hide their faces, with the man ducking down, when they noticed they were on a giant screen at the venue. 'Whoa, look at these two,' Coldplay frontman Chris Martin quipped. 'Either they're having an affair or they're just very shy.' CNN has reached out to a representative for Coldplay for comment. The video quickly went viral and internet sleuths were the first to identify Byron and Cabot. Social media has been so invested that there are now a slew of memes and comedic videos poking fun at the incident.
