When Your Trust Bank Account is Overdrawn: Scott at Media Orchard rightfully takes issue with bloggers who jumped to the worst possible conclusion about Wal-Mart's offensive links problem--and offers up the real explanation, which I hadn't seen before (it wasn't a software glitch; it was a well-meaning human error). Obviously, the company is owed an apology.

And yet... and yet... Without condoning or apologizing for those who accused Wal-Mart of racism, I have to say that if Al Golin's famous "trust bank" concept means anything, it means that while some companies have a healthy balance to draw on in times of trouble (Johnson & Johnson), others are overdrawn (Wal-Mart). So when a problem comes along, they don't get the benefit of the doubt; people assume the worst.

Wal-Mart, lest we forget, has a history of censoring authors whose politics it disagrees with; exploiting illegal immigrants; and comparing its critics to Nazis. That doesn't make it racist. But a company that nurtures that kind of reputation should not be surprised if some people assume the worst.