Nuclear energy has a rather tainted public perception. Visions of the iconic cooling tower, “Blinky” the three-eyed mutant fish from The Simpsons, bone chilling mushroom clouds high above the Nevada Desert, global thermal nuclear war, and of course Chernobyl, all come to mind when the conversation turns to the atomic.
Finally, certain PR brains in the energy consortium are harnessing innovation as deftly as splitting Uranium-235 atoms in an explosion of energy and excitement.
Similar to the perfect combination of peanut butter and chocolate from a standpoint of eloquence, the marketing gurus have finally decided to ditch the hornet’s nest yellow and black stinging sign warning of radiation for a much more palatable trademark. Yes, they went there.
Sex, meet atomic energy. Atomic energy, prepare to be amazed.
Fox News reports that a nuclear power plant in the Czech Republic held the world’s first official radioactive bikini contest, with the winner receiving a two-week internship at the facility.
It only gets better.
Ten female high school graduates were photographed in one of the plant’s cooling towers donning attire covering physiques that could easily hijack an SI swimsuit issue. Online users were subsequently asked to vote for their favorite contestant, with the winner not only receiving the internship, but being crowned as “Bouncer Of Energy” ( translated to English).
Not surprisingly, the backlash to the publicity stunt has been hilariously severe, as feminists and politicians attempt to cope with the instant celebrity viral rise of nuclear energy as the rockstar utility of choice, and the daunting reality that sex still sells. It has to be dubiously painful for a career incumbent of congress, who now has to cope with the realization that these ten energy princesses have accomplished more with a single image, than years of ceaseless pontification, taxation, and filibustering.
Thankfully, staff at the plant did not retract the spirit of the contest, and all of the women photographed were granted internships.
As the global pool of qualified workers possessing industrial grade technical skills continues to shrink, the emphasis on recruitment and training is vital in the sustainability of basic and crucial societal infrastructure. Why not employ edgy marketing tactics as a call to action in promoting dry and stale industries? With the US education system caught in the vicious cycle of relaxed college admission standards providing opportunities for federal grant money to fund public school systems producing a high volume of university applicants in filling the increased chances for enrollment, the skilled trades are not only being overlooked, but are being ushered into obscurity. Quite possibly, the US energy concern should borrow the tactics of the Czech nuclear power plant in stimulating a resurgence and emphasis on skills and offset the vapid propagation of college graduates earning degrees that provide zero relevance in the job market.
Read the Fox News article here.