back to article This headline will, in part, cost pepper-spraying University of California, Davis $175k

The University of California, Davis has spent $175,000 on search engine optimization (SEO) and online reputation management – to hide an embarrassing incident in which students were pepper-sprayed on campus. The massive bill has come to light this week after the Sacramento Bee filed information requests on the university's …

  1. Mark 85

    It's pretty obvious from the article and the links this isn't about the Uni's image that needs cleaning up, but Katehi's.

    1. John Brown (no body) Silver badge

      My thoughts exactly. It might have been cheaper to fire her and pay off any "early termination" fees. That would probably have to the world of good to their reputation at the same time.,

  2. x 7

    just shows what happens when institutions are allowed to hire their own little private police forces a.k.a untrained jumped up mussolini supporters.

    These private ego trips should be subsumed into the real police - or if they're not up to it, sacked.

    Look at the twat spraying the pepper - none of those kids are a threat to him or anyone else. He's just being a bully, just for the fun of it. Probably was hoping one of the kids would react, so he could have some fun with his gun. Really big man

    1. far2much4me

      The University of California and California State University campuses are state universities. The campus police are officially California State police and are not private. Makes me wonder if any law suits are naming the university or the state as defendant. But then again, the state is about as financially broke as the university, so maybe it makes no difference.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        They might "officially" be California state police, but I doubt they go through the same hiring and training process as real CHPS officers do. Where I live there's a state university that has its own police force, and they are not trained nearly to the extent the city or county cops are (let alone the state, who I assume have even higher standards) Nonetheless, a few years ago they won the right to carry firearms.

        If we ever have a Ferguson style incident here, I have no doubt it will be the campus cops who are responsible.

    2. kain preacher

      In California campus police are real police. The go through the same training as regular police. In some cases the campus police are staffed by local sheriffs dept.

    3. This post has been deleted by its author

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Given the pictures of that fat-arsed cop and his behaviour, the news that he's trained to the same standard as other regular California police isn't perhaps as reassuring as you intended.

    4. A Non e-mouse Silver badge

      I wonder if any of these institutions are aware of the Stanford Prison Experiment? I think that an understanding of that experiment should be compulsory for anyone in a police-type role.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        They deliberately don't hire people above a certain IQ level to be police. I'm not sure the people they do get are capable of understanding that experiment. Or worse, it will give them an excuse to not feel bad about treating people like that.

    5. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      > Look at the twat spraying the pepper - none of those kids are a threat to him or anyone else. He's just being a bully, just for the fun of it. Probably was hoping one of the kids would react, so he could have some fun with his gun.

      You really should look at the whole video. In it you'll find that things are not how you expected them to be.

      For example, the students in the picture have surrounded the cops and are not letting them leave. The cop doing the spraying repeatedly told the students that they could either let the cops go or be sprayed. This was done several times to ensure everyone understood.

      1. ChrisBedford

        "cop [...] repeatedly told the students that they could either let the cops go or be sprayed"

        Doesn't matter. (a) the armed side of a confrontation can't use excessive force against the unarmed side, and (b) don't write cheques you can't honour.

      2. Mike Moyle

        "The cop doing the spraying repeatedly told the students that they could either let the cops go or be sprayed."

        If so, then perhaps he could have been better justified if he had acted against the ones standing and blocking their exit instead of the ones who were sitting down and in custody. This strikes me as akin to the old National Lampoon cover: "Buy this magazine or we'll shoot this dog." Just a thought...

      3. Triggerfish

        @AC

        Actually they tried that defense then further footage came out from cellphones at other angles showing that to be incorrect.

        Also dude they are students having a sit in protest, it's hardly a riot.

    6. Teropher

      Not that I'm disagreeing that the pepper spraying of people peacefully sitting on the ground is wrong but your comment "Probably was hoping one of the kids would react, so he could have some fun with his gun." Do you know anything about pepper spray at all? The whole point of it is to incapacitate a person to where they're too busy being blinded and in pain to do any to the person who sprayed them in the first place.

      1. x 7

        Yes I have handled the active ingredients in pepper spray. And CS, CN, several blister agents and a couple of WW2 era nerve agents (DFP, DNP) plus a large number of other nasties.

        A bit of pepper spray isn't certain to incapacitate someone sufficiently motivated or pissed off.

  3. Nunyabiznes

    While you are spewing cash...

    Hand me $5k and I'll let you in on a secret. Let sleeping dogs lie.

    The original source of Pike pepper-spraying "activists" was largely fading into the background before this latest round of misbegotten thinking was aired. It had turned into a humorous anecdote for the mainstream and the hard core believers won't be swayed by anything you can come up with so the best thing to do was let a few layers of time and the next latest crisis divert attention.

    1. allthecoolshortnamesweretaken

      Re: While you are spewing cash...

      5k? That's amateur stuff. Demand at least 150k for the basic package, plus optional modules at 50k each.

    2. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

      Re: While you are spewing cash...

      For £5K I'll let you into an even better secret. If you don't want a bad reputation don't do bad stuff.

    3. I ain't Spartacus Gold badge
      Happy

      Re: While you are spewing cash...

      Your SEO service is rubbish. Only $5k? Pah! Amateur.

      Now if you pay me $500k, I'll do it properly.

      Why is the fee so high you ask? Well vintage champagne doesn't buy itself it's complicated. The multi-million pound option is simply to bribe Google. You could also try blackmailing Google, but given all the data they've been hoovering up for the last decade, that's probably a very bad idea.

      So what you need to do is own those search terms. Not a problem. Your money will buy you access cookery show on national television. Pick whichever chef our marketing shows resonates with young people.

      Next he'll be cooking in a show at UC Davis. The recipe? Pike, pepper with a spray of green herbs.

      Job done. Search laundered. Now hand over the cash.

    4. ChrisBedford

      Re: While you are spewing cash...

      "The original source of Pike pepper-spraying 'activists' was largely fading into the background before this latest round of misbegotten thinking was aired"

      Barbara Streisand Effect, all over again. I wonder how many times someone has to try this before it becomes a "known thing" that people try to avoid?

      Given the average intellect on teh interwebs, I'm guessing it will never happen...

  4. J. R. Hartley

    That reminds me...

    Wonder what Barbera Streisand is up to these days?

    1. Doctor Syntax Silver badge

      Re: That reminds me...

      And what's John Pike up to these days? Sacked? Demoted? Or even promoted.

      1. Krtek

        Re: That reminds me...

        Unfortunately and outrageously not. He got over $38,000 in compensation for hurt feelings because of the distress caused by the meme's.

        http://fortune.com/tag/uc-davis/

        'The incident sparked a debate about the militarization of campus police. John Pike, the officer who casually sprayed the protestors, ended up getting over $38,000 in workers compensation for the “psychiatric injury” he sustained by launching a thousand memes.'

    2. Ken Hagan Gold badge

      Re: That reminds me...

      Googling for "Streisand" delivers a top link to her own home page plus a wikipedia article on the Streisand effect, because that (to be honest) is what she is now best known for.

      Googling for "Davis University" delivers a top link to their home page, but if you append "news" to that then I'm afraid you get a slew of articles about this incident.

    3. Mike Moyle

      Re: That reminds me...

      I was thinking that maybe she could do a fund-raiser for the school and the admin. Maybe get some other celebs who have had feuds with social media and do a group fun-raiser... Call it "(S)kool Aid" or something/

  5. Franklin

    $15,000/month for ineffective Google-fiddling?

    Clearly I'm in the wrong business. I would offer them the same service with the same result for--let's see--um, half that much! Sure. Half that much. I can do fuckall for $7.5k/month, no problem.

  6. BurnT'offering

    UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

    Presumably the SEO campaign by UC Davis (where Lieutenant John Pike pepper sprayed a peaceful student demo) was designed to put other search results above any containing the terms, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". This will be quite difficult if there are many other pages with those terms ( "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray"). Perhaps it would have been better if UC Davis had never entrusted Lieutenant John Pike wth such harmful weapons as pepper spray. Then they wouldn't find themselves having to try and beat the search rankings for "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". That's, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray".

    1. Anonymous Coward
      Anonymous Coward

      Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

      Rinse and repeat: Presumably the SEO campaign by UC Davis (where Lieutenant John Pike pepper sprayed a peaceful student demo) was designed to put other search results above any containing the terms, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". This will be quite difficult if there are many other pages with those terms ( "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray"). Perhaps it would have been better if UC Davis had never entrusted Lieutenant John Pike wth such harmful weapons as pepper spray. Then they wouldn't find themselves having to try and beat the search rankings for "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". That's, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". All together now.....

    2. hplasm
      Thumb Up

      Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

      So basically, what you are saying is:

      Presumably the SEO campaign by UC Davis (where Lieutenant John Pike pepper sprayed a peaceful student demo) was designed to put other search results above any containing the terms, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". This will be quite difficult if there are many other pages with those terms ( "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray"). Perhaps it would have been better if UC Davis had never entrusted Lieutenant John Pike wth such harmful weapons as pepper spray. Then they wouldn't find themselves having to try and beat the search rankings for "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". That's, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray".

      I see.

      1. Kane
        Go

        Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

        Presumably the SEO campaign by UC Davis (where Lieutenant John Pike pepper sprayed a peaceful student demo) was designed to put other search results above any containing the terms, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". This will be quite difficult if there are many other pages with those terms ( "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray"). Perhaps it would have been better if UC Davis had never entrusted Lieutenant John Pike wth such harmful weapons as pepper spray. Then they wouldn't find themselves having to try and beat the search rankings for "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". That's, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray".

        Really? I never would have guessed!

        1. x 7

          Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

          "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray" "wanker" "bully" "despot" "tosspot" "incompetent" "fat bastard" "inconsiderate" "gun-happy" "violent" "student hating" "cretin"

          just adding a few terms to make this easier to find online

      2. Triggerfish

        Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

        Presumably the SEO campaign by UC Davis (where Lieutenant John Pike pepper sprayed a peaceful student demo) was designed to put other search results above any containing the terms, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". This will be quite difficult if there are many other pages with those terms ( "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray"). Perhaps it would have been better if UC Davis had never entrusted Lieutenant John Pike wth such harmful weapons as pepper spray. Then they wouldn't find themselves having to try and beat the search rankings for "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". That's, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray".

        Oh is that how SEO works then?

    3. <shakes head>

      Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

      oh get a grip Pepper spray is not harmful, it is irritating, take it from some one you has beenboth pepper sprayed and tear gassed.

      1. BurnT'offering

        Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

        SO it wasn't the pepper spray or the tear gas that damaged your ability to get the point?

    4. Vic

      Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

      where Lieutenant John Pike pepper sprayed a peaceful student demo

      I seem to have missed that story.

      Are you telling me that "Lieutenant John Pike", whilst working for "UC Davis", used "pepper spray" on a peaceful student demo?

      That would be shocking. Imagine if Google or some other search engine got hold of such information.

      So did it really happen? Did "Lieutenant John Pike", whilst working for "UC Davis", use "pepper spray" on a peaceful student demo?

      Vic.

    5. John Brown (no body) Silver badge
      Boffin

      Re: UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

      In reply to:

      "Presumably the SEO campaign by UC Davis (where Lieutenant John Pike pepper sprayed a peaceful student demo) was designed to put other search results above any containing the terms, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". This will be quite difficult if there are many other pages with those terms ( "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray"). Perhaps it would have been better if UC Davis had never entrusted Lieutenant John Pike wth such harmful weapons as pepper spray. Then they wouldn't find themselves having to try and beat the search rankings for "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray". That's, "UC Davis", "Lieutenant John Pike" and "pepper spray".

      I hear that google page ranking also take links to the relevant page into account too.

      In case there's anyone with pepper spray nearby ------------------->

  7. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Don't mind me, I'm just watering my hippies

  8. JeffyPoooh
    Pint

    University UC Davis chancellor Linda Katehi Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

    University of Davis and chancellor Linda Katehi

    UC Davis Lieutenant John Pike pepper spray

    Using bold can reportedly help with P_a/g-e R=a-n+k.

    This comment will cost them at least $147.50.

  9. Herby

    He should of used...

    Bull S**t repellent instead of pepper spray. It might have worked even better if the can was labeled as "toxic poison".

    As for the reputation, not much can fix that but TIME, or outlawing search engines (good luck with that!).

    1. jason 7

      Re: He should of used...

      If you want to clear an area of young people just switch off the wi-fi and data.

    2. John Brown (no body) Silver badge
      Headmaster

      Re: He should HAVE used...

      Sheesh!

  10. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    And now the top search result will be

    The SEO campaign trying to hide the pepper spraying. Welcome to the Streisand Effect, UC Davis!

  11. DanceMan

    And in Canada in 1997............................Sgt. Pepper

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmJiTX8adIs

    http://www.cbc.ca/archives/entry/1997-protest-and-pepper-spray-at-apec-conference

    In summary, a protest over Suharto attending an APEC conference, resulting in a similar pepper-spraying incident.

    For entertainment, search "Narduwar". Local musician and interviewer, he has spiced up a few press conferences over the years. In this case some time after the event he prompted this response from our then-PM Jear Chretien, "Pepper, I put it on my plate."

  12. Charles Osborne

    Sub-optimal cops hurt everyone

    Even here in Snuggly-soft Portland, Oregon, the few bad cops don't understand their jobs. They endanger the majority good cops because trogs can't tell the diff. (And it's not too safe if you have a big mouth, either.)

    http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2014/01/pepper-sprayed_occupy_portland.html

  13. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Spraying for weed

    When it's the tall-poppies that need removing.

  14. jake Silver badge

    Pepper spray?

    That's good eats. I put it on my breakfast eggs :-)

  15. Oengus
    Joke

    Right to be forgotten

    Couldn't they just file a "Right to be forgotten" claim over the incident and have it removed from search results...

  16. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Just like in Bolivia

    I find the concept of "campus police" amusing to no end, for some reason.

    That said, the US is not the only place to have such oddities. Years ago a friend of mine from uni ended up lecturing in Bolivia for a few months (physics). In the classroom, there was always a soldier with an assault rifle.

    "Por si pasa algo", was the answer he got when querying the purpose of this armed presence. Got to love repressive regimes. :-)

    1. Bumpy Cat

      Re: Just like in Bolivia

      Did they let the soldier sit the exams? It would be a wasted opportunity otherwise.

    2. jason 7

      Re: Just like in Bolivia

      Do the campus Police's badges have "How's My Smile?" written on them?

  17. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    They should have paid more

    or find themselves a better PR company. They seem to have missed the Wankypedia page.

  18. sandman

    Just wrong

    Surely the question should be "Why in hell's good name does a university need its own police force?" Any society that thinks this even approximates to a good idea needs to take a long hard look at itself.

    1. jason 7

      Re: Just wrong

      I see your point...but unfortunately, lots of young people there have access to guns...and some of those young people are a bit odd and highly strung.

      It's a bit of a wider problem.

      Look up University/College Shootings.

      1. sandman

        Re: Just wrong

        True - that's the society bit I was thinking about. There doesn't seem any particularly good reason why students should be allowed guns on campus, but then you'd need a police force to disarm them I suppose.... If we'd had guns at university, the student union would have turned into a bloodbath on Saturday nights ;-)

      2. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: Just wrong

        > I see your point...but unfortunately, lots of young people there have access to guns

        Do you mean like in Finland, Switzerland, Czech Rep... Czechia, etc.?

        > and some of those young people are a bit odd and highly strung.

        Yes you do. :-)

        > Look up University/College Shootings.

        Nope, haven't found any for neither of those three countries I've mentioned.

        So remind me, what's this "wider problem" then?

    2. Sherrie Ludwig

      Re: Just wrong

      Way back in the Dark Ages when I went to college, the campus cops were more like security guards - to prevent frat pranks from damaging property, to walk lone students to the dorms late at night (why are so many American institutes of higher learning in nasty neighborhoods?) and to make parents think their kids are safe. Now, they are as highly militarized and SWAT teams and just as overused.

  19. Real Ale is Best

    It's hit the BBC now :-D

    How much of an own goal?

    1. Kane
      Thumb Up

      Does anyone know if hyperlinks are indexed with their associated content?

      http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/technology-36053673

      1. The Nazz

        Maybe not the pepper spray but .....

        Such and similar financial practices, let's say misuse of public monies, have been endemic in UK public bodies for years.

        The BBC and the list of attendees of the global warming farce? For what purpose?

  20. Brian Allan 1

    Just shows that universities are no longer about education and higher learning BUT simply part of the money grabbing capitalistic society!

  21. Sgt_Oddball

    not being an American. "

    I have to ask, since was America such a police state that universities require fully trained police forces?

    For the record I live in the same city as the UK's largest uni and all they have is a small campus security body that basically just stops the public bathing in one of the fountains (it's a right of passage apparently) and by largest I mean as in there's enough students to start a mix sized town (70k students last time I heard figures being quoted).

    1. kain preacher

      Re: not being an American. "

      Sgt_Oddball part of the problems that some of these colleges are in real shit holes. Students get robbed by the locals at gun point.

      1. Anonymous Coward
        Anonymous Coward

        Re: not being an American. "

        > Students get robbed by the locals at gun point.

        Students are too pampered these days. Back when I went to college it was the locals who were afraid.

  22. ecofeco Silver badge

    The Internet is scrubbed every day in some way

    There are many firms who specialize in scrubbing the Internet. It's turned researching into a real crap shoot.

    What you know without a doubt that was there yesterday, can often no longer be there a year later. I've taken to downloading whole pages when doing research these days. Wished I had been smarter about this years ago.

    Thank god for the Internet Archives. Although they are not perfect, they are better than nothing.

  23. Anonymous Coward
    Anonymous Coward

    Pies

    It is quite clear from the picture who ate all the pies! Seriously chubby.

    Walking nonchalantly with a pepper spray is probably just about all he could manage.

  24. Anonymous Coward
    Facepalm

    University of California, Davis incident in which students were pepper-sprayed on campus.

    Police pepper spraying and arresting students at UC Davis

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