In a world where polarizing events and morality questions abound, we as Americans are faced with dilemmas every day of where to spend our money and what companies to support. Netflix has found itself in the cross hairs of that voting system.
The beauty of capitalism is, we have a choice, as the ones that yield the power to enrich or bankrupt businesses. This is not a traditional vote at the ballot box, but a vote with the all-American dollar; the argument could be made, that voting with our dollars are even more powerful than with a piece of paper.
Netflix made the decision to acquire the rights to Cuties, an award-winning French film that delves into the tensions that arise with traditional families trying to raise young girls in the modern world. Let’s face it, the film is not the problem! The choice of promotional posters, showing the cast of 11-year-old girls in seductive positions, became the hot button topic. In fact, a petition to remove the film in it’s entirety received 626,689 signatures as of September 14th, 2020.
Since the release of the first round of promotional material, Netflix NASDAQ: NFLX has plummeted from a all time high of $556.55 on September 1, 2020 to a share price of $470.20 which equates to a 15.5% reduction in share price in just two weeks. Keep in mind, Netflix has achieved over 50% gains amidst the corona virus pandemic, staring the year at $325 per share. However, even during a time when Netflix should be soaring in the face of a worldwide pandemic, the moral voting with currency has shaken this mega-company to their core.
However, the coda to the story has not yet been written, questions still remain. Have we over-reacted to an honest mistake regarding a promotional poster? Has the media circus replaced BLM, Epstein, and the pandemic with a new story? What we do know is this, the world will vote with their currency and we will control the rise or fall of Netflix.
