A major food fight is brewing in California with potential consequences for all Americans, and it’s not the old-fashioned kind immortalized in movies set in school cafeterias. Proposition 37, one of 11 statewide measures on the docket for California voters in November, would require stores and vendors to label genetically modified organisms (GMO) foods by 2014. 

"It's an epic food fight between the pesticide companies and consumers who want to know what's in their food," said Stacy Malkan, media director for the California Right to Know campaign, which has raised $2.4 million to promote their initiative. Continue reading...

Google homepage logo pays tribute to the opening of the XXX Olympic Games in London.

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos pledges $2.5 million in support of gay marriage as Chick-Fil-A deals with firestorm created by CEO’s gay-marriage stance.

Barclays reveals new interest-rate probe and more U.S. lawsuits.

Airbus delays A350 over production problems.

Apple acquires fingerprint security firm.Continue reading...

As the Olympic torch arrives in London today, a little confusion and more clarity also arrives around the issue of whether visitors to the London 2012 Summer Games will be turned back at the entrance if wearing non-sponsors' logos. In a word, no — despite some confusion from Lord Coe.

That would be Sebastian Coe, the Olympic gold medalist and chairman of the London Olympics Organizing Committee, raised a few eyebrows beyond his advice to competitors to curb tweeting. The 2012 Summer Olympics chairman's interview with the BBC's Radio 4 sent his LOCOG colleagues "scrambling" Friday after he stated that Pepsi t-shirts on attendees wouldn't be welcome in deference to sponsor Coca-Cola, while Nike sneakers would be acceptable even though Adidas is the official shoe sponsor.Continue reading...

The way the world communicates with one another is ever-evolving as new technologies continue to appear and social media continues to introduce new avenues of expression. With that, brands are always finding new ways to touch their customers and all of the classic branding rules are being tossed out the window.

Olympic sponsorship has long been a way for major brands to reach consumers every few years, but international Olympic executives are looking to possibly shift how the model works in order to embrace this new world.

The sponsorship model now in place brings in $1 billion, according to the Financial Times, but the IOC is planning to “take a step back” and re-assess the sponsorship strategy going forward.Continue reading...

Dow Chemical isn’t backing out as a sponsor of the Olympics this summer in London and its name will be plastered (after all) over the stadium that will host the Opening Ceremonies. This, of course, has not been sitting right with folks in India, where the disastrous gas leak of 1984 by Union Carbide, which has since become a subsidiary of Dow, killed more than 20,000 people, according to the Indian government.

The Indian Olympic Association has hinted that it may pull out of London 2012 because of Dow’s involvement, even though Dow continues to point out that it did not own Union Carbide at the time of the disaster.

Protests notwithstanding, British Prime Minister David Cameron told CNN-IBN on Sunday that "it would be a very sad day" if India decided to boycott the Games.Continue reading...

Archie Comics celebrates gay marriage in new cover.

Bristol-Myers to buy Inhibitex for $2.5 billion.

CBS introduces all-new CBS This Morning show.

Cadillac unveils ATS small sedan as import-fighter at Detroit Auto Show, which signals a turnaround for the industry.

Chick-fil-A cuts calories in kids' meals.

CES loses clout as tech-industry platform.

Current TV and Keith Olbermann make up following election coverage dispute.

Denny's promotes healthier media options.

Disney marketing head MT Carney departs.

Dow sponsorship of London 2012 Olympics continues to raise hackles.Continue reading...

Amazon violates contract with Kindle, U.S. authors' guild says.

Anthony's Pizza & Pasta takes on national pizza chains in Colorado.

Apple adds Disney CEO Bob Iger to board as the company warms up to the business market.

Cadillac takes broad aim with new flagship XTS sedan.

Citigroup trims workforce.

Dow sponsorship deal creates headache for London 2012 organizers.

Facebook invokes the wrath of Salman Rushdie with real-name push.

Family Dollar arrives in California.Continue reading...

General Electric has decided to go “faster, higher, stronger” for another decade.

The 119-year-old brand co-founded by Thomas Edison has agreed to extend its Olympics sponsorship with “a four-games deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars,” according to the Associated Press.

As with past Olympics, when it owned NBC to help reinforce its branding, viewers worldwide will get to see the GE logo in every place possible through the 2012 London Olympics, the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, the 2016 Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, and the 2018 Winter Games and 2020 Summer Olympics. The latter pair has not had their host cities selected, the AP points out.

The other current sponsors that will be involved with the Olympics through 2020 include Coca-Cola, Dow, Omega, Proctor & Gamble, and Visa.Continue reading...