KitchenAid's Errant Tweet

One of KitchenAid's tweeters confused accounts. During the Presidential debate Tuesday night between President Obama and Mitt Romney, someone tweeted from KitchenAid's handle:

"Obamas gma even knew it was going 2 b bad!
'She died 3 days b4 he became president.'"

Although the company deleted the tweet, the damage was done. Criticsm was quick and rampant on Twitter. 

Cynthia Soledad, a senior director at KitchenAid issued this response:

"During the debate last night, a member of our Twitter team mistakenly posted an offensive tweet from the KitchenAid handle instead of a personal handle. This tasteless joke in no way represents our values at KitchenAid. This person will no longer be tweeting for us and appropriate actions are being taken.  That said, I lead the KitchenAid brand, and I take responsibility for the whole team. I am deeply sorry to President Obama, his family, and our consumers for this careless error."

Soledad posted a similar comment on the company's Facebook page: 

Someone managing the KitchenAid handle also tweeted this apology:

Discussion Starters:

• What could KitchenAid have done to prevent this situation?
• How do you assess KitchenAid's apologies? What aspects of the company's response are effective, and what could be improved?