Today on Money Radio, Fasturtle’s digital pros analyze this week’s corporate kerfuffles. First, Uber made headlines again for reasons most businesses don’t want to make headlines. Then, a great disturbance in the Force as millions of voices suddenly cried out about the new relationship between Amazon and kale. What does it mean?

Uber as a Case Study in Reputation Monitoring

Let’s review the scandals Uber has faced already this year:

• A former Uber engineer posts allegations of sexism and sexual harassment.
• An Uber driver posts video of CEO Travis Kalanick exchanging words with him over fares. Spoiler alert: they are not flattering words that shed great light on the company.
• Uber became ensnared in a lawsuit with Google’s self-driving care subsidiary.
• High-profile litanies of foul play by Uber over the past few years.
• All of the above culminating in Kalanick stepping down as CEO.

In a frantic effort to save face, Kalanick attempted to humanize himself on social media and thereby take the heat off him and his company. However, there’s more to effective reputation monitoring than puppies and cute hats. You need to address concerns, not just showcase yourself as a good guy while ignoring public feedback.

Amazon, Whole Foods and User Experience (UX)

No doubt, Amazon is a corporate behemoth. Business publications have been heralding the death of retail thanks to Amazon for years now. While Amazon isn’t entirely to blame, this acquisition raises questions about how the experience of buying groceries will change. Grocery e-commerce has grown as UX improves, and with Amazon’s slice of the pie it’s poised to grow even more.

Speaking of acquisitions, Snapchat just snapped up Zenly, a social mapping app. It appears that Zenly will remain an autonomous service, much like Instagram after Facebook’s acquisition.

To hear more, listen to our show on Money Radio Monday at noon on FM 105.3 or AM 1510. Alternately, you can catch up with the podcast.