Catch-22 for Kellogg's?

While he was a hero, he was also human and should have been forgiven for a mistake many people committed in early life. A sizable number of people, who supported the use of marijuana and were fighting for a change in the marijuana law in the country, too criticized the company. They felt that marijuana was safer than beer and that the company was being hypocritical as it had entered into a deal with Phelps despite the fact that the ace swimmer had been booked for drunken driving in 2004. Critics also felt that Kellogg had no right to judge Phelps when its own products, marketed as complete breakfast foods for children, were laden with high sugar content and were detrimental to health. Kellogg faced a major backlash and calls for boycott of its products.

Experts felt that Kellogg indeed found itself in a tricky situation. "It is undeniable that the situation Kellogg's found itself dealing with was a tough one.

Not dropping the Olympic athlete could have resulted in a similar backlash by parents who refused to let their children eat from a box of the tainted cereal,"¹³ according to Stephan Horbelt, a writer.

The incident not only rekindled the long-standing debate on celebrity endorsements but also led to a discussion on what public relations (PR) moves were "safe" nowadays with the ground rules having been radically changed with the advent of the Internet and social media.