text: International Women’s Day on Thursday is intended to celebrate women’s cultural and economic achievements and call for more gender parity. But as the calendar turns to March 8, it’s also time for the corporate pile-on of feel-good ads and product rollouts as brands rush to chime in on the pro-woman conversation. 
   
   Mattel on Tuesday unveiled 17 new “role model” Barbies for the occasion, honoring female icons such as Amelia Earhart and NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson. Modern-day figures like Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins and Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim also got their own lookalike dolls. 
   
   During the Oscars on Sunday, Nike aired a new ad starring Serena Williams that commemorated International Women’s Day. In the commercial, the tennis star says she’s been criticized as not “the right kind of woman,” but has learned that “there’s no wrong way to be a woman.” 
   
   Read More: Why You Should Wear Purple on International Women’s Day 
   
   Uber released a video in Asian markets that seeks to disprove myths about female drivers there, and Facebook has designed IWD-themed cards, photo frames, and backgrounds to adorn text posts by users on mobile devices. 
   
   In a wackier stunt, a California McDonald’s location is turning its trademark golden arches upside-down so what is normally an M becomes a W for women. 
   
   The history of International Women’s Day stretches back more than a century, but supporting it in 2018 may feel especially urgent for brands, as it’s the first IWD since the #MeToo movement went viral, prompting a much-needed reevaluation of how corporate America, Hollywood, and the media treat female employees. But even in the current climate, where the public seems especially receptive to messages of female empowerment, brands must tread carefully. There was criticism, for instance, that Mattel’s ‘role model’ Barbies appear to fit the doll’s trademark silhouette and the McDonald’s W was panned by some on social media as an empty, odd symbol. 
   
   Great job, feminism — we did it!!! pic.twitter.com/6ICfQbYuop — Lauren Duca (@laurenduca) March 7, 2018 
   
   The ongoing #MeToo and Time’s Up movements may make it seem like celebrating IWD is a no-brainer for brands, but in fact, the campaigns against sexual harassment and sexism have raised the bar, says Erin Keeley, CMO at Mono, an ad agency. 
   
   Messaging like the Nike ad is “motivational,” Keeley says. Such ads “make you feel good; they are a positive message,” she says. “You hate to say that you don’t want brands to do that.” But the dialogue around women’s equality seems to be “turning a corner,” she says, where awareness and inspiration aren’t enough. The conversation has moved on to action; into “what happens next,” she says. 
   
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   That’s a harder mission for brands, but Keeley says Getty Images seemed to pull it off during International Women’s Day 2017, when it announced that it was launching a female-focused sports photography internship with the goal of adding more diversity to the field and contributing “to a more positive portrayal of sportswomen in the media.” 
   
   In that same vein, commentators commended Frances McDormand for including in her Oscars acceptance speech an actionable step—demanding an inclusion rider—that actors could take to change the industry; she went beyond just girl-power cheerleading. 
   
   Read More: See Photos of the Women’s Rights Movement Dating Back 100 Years 
   
   The IWD conversation is also one that not every brand has to join. Tapping into IWD makes sense “if your brand is about progress; if it’s aligned with what’s happening that day,” Keeley says. 
   
   But even for those companies, IWD can be a prickly occasion to celebrate. 
   
   Liquor company Diageo tried to promote the progressive history of its Johnnie Walker brand in late February when it introduced its limited edition “Jane Walker” scotch whisky, its traditional Johnny Walker bottle with a female iteration of the brand’s Striding Man logo. Sale of Jane Walker is tied to Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day. In introducing the new bottle, the company touted the near equal gender make-up of its expert blenders and the women in its leadership ranks. “Women have played a significant role in the brand’s history dating back to 1893,” the company said in a release. But a quote by the brand’s vice president—“Scotch as a category is seen as particularly intimidating by women”—riled critics, including late-night host Stephen Colbert, who gave it the monologue treatment: “They changed the name to Jane Walker with a lady version of the mascot. Female drinkers everywhere will say, ‘Finally, a brand that’s condescending to me.'” ||||| Tweet with a location 
   
   You can add location information to your Tweets, such as your city or precise location, from the web and via third-party applications. You always have the option to delete your Tweet location history. Learn more ||||| In a study that Barbie conducted, 81% of 8,000 moms who had daughters under the age of 10 said they were worried about the types of role models their little girls were exposed to. These new dolls are a direct response to this anxiety. “We are thrilled to shine a light on real life role models to remind them that they can be anything,” Lisa McKnight, SVP and GM of Barbie, said in a statement announcing the collection. 
   
   At first blush, the toy brand has done an admirable job of highlighting inspirational women of many different ethnicities from around the world who have an impressive array of achievements. There’s Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins from the United States, two Michelin-star French chef Hélène Darroze, and Chinese ballerina Yuan Tan. There are even historical icons like artist Frida Kahlo, NASA mathematician Katherine Jenkins, and pilot Amelia Earhart. 
   
   And some even come with props! Olympic gold medalist Chloe Kim has her own snowboard, Australian conservationist (and Steve Irwin’s daughter) Bindi Irwin comes with a koala bear, and Chinese volleyball champion Hui Ruoqi has a ball in tow. 
   
   The dolls’ faces, eye colors, and hairstyles appear carefully designed to capture the likenesses of the real woman each is meant to represent. But for all this attention to detail, it seems strange that Mattel made all the dolls rail thin. In fact, the dolls’ bodies are almost identical each another–which is the first tip-off that something is amiss. Irwin’s doll is a little shorter than her counterparts, while Ruoqi’s is slightly taller, and Spanish entrepreneur Vicky Martin Berrocal’s is a smidge curvier, but there is nothing realistic about these dolls at all. 
   
   It’s an odd move for Mattel. Since 2009, Barbie sales have spiraled downward. Between 2012 and 2014 alone, the brand’s sales plummeted by 20%. While part of this shift has to do with kids preferring electronic toys over analog ones, analysts say that part of the decline is due to parents who believe Barbie is a bad influence on girls. A slew of research has found that playing with Barbie makes girls feel lower self-esteem about their bodies. ||||| If you’ve visited Google, you’ll know that Wednesday’s Doodle honors International Women’s Day! 
   
   The Google Doodle, which can be viewed around the world, is an interactive feature on the website’s homepage that features stories from “everyday women,” including 12 female artists of varying backgrounds to celebrate women’s social, economic, and political achievements as well as to address gender equality. 
   
   International Women’s Day was founded more than a century ago after more than 15,000 women marched in New York City to demand better working conditions and voting rights. 
   
   This year, the company collaborated with Tunalaya Dunn, Kaveri Gopalakrishnan, Anna Haifisch, Isuri, Saffa Khan, Laerte, Estelí Meza, Karabo Poppy Moletsane, Philippa Rice, Francesca Sanna, Chihiro Takeuchi and Tillie Walden to mark International Women’s Day 2018, which is officially celebrated on March 8. 
   
   In addition, their inspiring messages have been translated into more than 80 languages. 
   
   It's officially #IWD2018 in the 🌎🌍🌏! Explore stories from women all over the globe in today's #GoogleDoodle & share yours using #HerStoryOurStory! → https://t.co/ydJboV47yJ pic.twitter.com/FBNpCPtMK8 — Google Doodles (@GoogleDoodles) March 7, 2018 
   
   And you too can contribute to International Women’s Day as Google is encouraging ladies from all over to share their own stories using the hashtag #HerStoryOurStory. 
   
   “We invite storytellers of all kinds to join us by posting their own personal stories about a moment, person, or event that has impacted their lives as women,” the company shared. 
   
   Google isn’t the only brand to announce initiatives in celebration of International Women’s Day. 
   
   This #InternationalWomensDay, we are honoring more female role models than ever before. Introducing the largest addition to our Sheroes line to date – meet our new Global Sheroes. Share your role models with us to help inspire more girls using #MoreRoleModels. #IWD2018 pic.twitter.com/NBwxxgDAXg — Barbie (@Barbie) March 7, 2018 
   
   Mattel and Barbie released a new collection of history-making dolls by debuting the immortalized versions of Olympic snowboarder Chloe Kim, Bindi Irwin and Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins. 
   
   In addition, fast food conglomerate McDonald’s flipped its iconic golden arches upside down from an “M” to a “W” in “celebration of women everywhere,” according to Business Insider. A Lynwood, California, location turned the sign specifically for International Women’s Day. McDonald’s also stated it will turn its logo upside down on all its digital channels, such as Twitter and Instagram, on Thursday. ||||| On Women's day, French newspaper Liberation highlighted injustice done to women regarding wages (AFP) 
   
   Male readers of leftwing French daily Liberation were asked to pay 25 percent more for their paper on Thursday, to underscore the gender pay gap on International Women's Day.The paper published two versions with different cover pages, one marked "for women, 2 euros, normal price" with a pictogram of a woman, the other marked "for men, 2.50 euros" with a pictogram of a man.In a front-page message the paper noted that despite equal pay for equal work being enshrined by law since 1972, French women earn on average 25.7 percent less than men, according to a 2017 report from an inequality watchdog."To highlight this injustice Liberation has decided to apply the same difference to its sale price for a day, meaning 50 cents more for men," it said, adding that profits from the operation would be donated to France's non-governmental Equality Observatory.Liberation said it was inspired by Canadian monthly Maclean's, which charged men more for its March edition also to denounce the wage gap.On Wednesday, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced plans to get tough on companies that pay women less.Under a package of workplace reforms to be finalised next month, wage gap screening software will be rolled out in all companies with more than 250 employees from 2019, and in all companies with over 50 employees by 2022, Philippe said.Companies with "unjustified" disparities will have three years to rectify the situation or face fines of up to 1 percent of their wage bill, he said.Drawing on 2012 statistics, the Equality Observatory said last year that women earned 25.7 percent less than men.A 2014 report by national statistics agency INSEE put the gap slightly lower, at 23.8 percent.When adjustments for part-time work were factored in, women were still paid on average 17.4 percent less, the report found.For the same job, women are estimated to be paid nine percent less. ||||| Obituary writing is more about life than death: the last word, a testament to a human contribution. 
   
   Yet who gets remembered — and how — inherently involves judgment. To look back at the obituary archives can, therefore, be a stark lesson in how society valued various achievements and achievers. 
   
   Since 1851, The New York Times has published thousands of obituaries: of heads of state, opera singers, the inventor of Stove Top stuffing and the namer of the Slinky. The vast majority chronicled the lives of men, mostly white ones. 
   
   Charlotte Brontë wrote “Jane Eyre”; Emily Warren Roebling oversaw construction of the Brooklyn Bridge when her husband fell ill; Madhubala transfixed Bollywood; Ida B. Wells campaigned against lynching. Yet all of their deaths went unremarked in our pages, until now. 
   
   Below you’ll find obituaries for these and others who left indelible marks but were nonetheless overlooked. We’ll be adding to this collection each week, as Overlooked becomes a regular feature in the obituaries section, and expanding our lens beyond women. 
   
   You can use this form to nominate candidates for future “Overlooked” obits. Read an essay from our obituaries editor about how he approaches subjects and learn more about how the project came to be.
target: – Thursday is International Women's Day, an annual event getting more attention than usual in 2018 because it's the first in the wake of the #MeToo movement. As expected, brands (including McDonald's) are looking to capitalize, though critics are calling out examples of perceived misfires. Here's a look at what's going on in the US and around the world: Obituaries: One of the more interesting efforts comes from the New York Times, which acknowledges that it has focused too much on men in its obituaries over the years. A new project, "Overlooked," seeks to correct that by catching up on obits that should have been done but weren't. Subjects now getting their due include poet Sylvia Plath, anti-lynching crusader Ida B. Wells, and Jane Eyre author Charlotte Bronte. Branding: At the Financial Times, Kate Allen thinks the move by McDonald's to flip its arches into a W is "possibly the most superficial approach to gender politics in the universe." Nor is she a fan of the stunt by French newspaper Liberation to charge male readers more on Thursday. "There are various ways to highlight the gender pay gap, but this is a vastly oversimplified one to pick." Branding, II: Fortune looks at other corporate efforts, including Mattel's "role model" Barbies, also being panned. The problem for companies is that sloganeering is no longer enough, writes Claire Zillman. Google is also in on the day with its interactive Google Doodle, which invites women to share their own stories, notes People.