New York-based dancer Benjamin Millepied may be better known for being a parent with partner Natalie Portman these days, but the Black Swan choreographer-turned-actor is also getting into the endorsement business.

Above, check out "l'Envol," a balletic ode to flight, the new global branding spot for Air France. The simplicity and minimalism of the campaign is a dramatic contrast to British Airways' new heritage-based global campaign.

Millepied clearly likes French brands, as he also can be seen in a flighty new spot for Yves Saint Laurent, which you can watch below below.Continue reading...

News Corp.'s Rupert Murdoch and son James prepare to testify Tuesday before a British parliamentary hearing on phone-hacking scandal as former News of the World whistleblowing journalist is found dead and The Sun's website is hacked.

Borders calls off auction, announces plans to liquidate and close doors by September.

Cisco slashes workforce by 11,500 positions.

Apple seeks to expand iPhone availability in China.

CNN is first TV network to stream 24/7 online and on mobile.

Delta cuts service to smaller markets.

Dunkin' Brands leads wave of IPOs in the US.Continue reading...

With the ouster of designer John Galliano from haute fashion brand Christian Dior, once again we see a brand scrambling to pick up the pieces as one of its celebrated spokespeople gets embroiled in controversy. We have heard this story many times before. The Tiger Woods debacle, which affected a number of brands including Nike, is one glaring example.  

For brands linked to high-profile personalities who are not always predictable, swift and decisive damage control seems to be part of the package in this era of swift and loud real-time public outcry.

For Dior, though, the removal of Galliano has to be particularly painful — even though the designer has issued a public apology following charges of anti-Semitism sparked by a web report by UK tabloid The Sun, which posted damning video of a ranting Galliano in a Paris café.Continue reading...

From the "Bad Things (to Say, Let Alone Think) Happen in Threes" Dept. of Personal Branding today:

Natalie Portman hadn't even accepted her first Academy Award on Sunday, when news broke that Christian Dior designer John Galliano had reportedly made anti-Semitic remarks in public that were videotaped and published on the website of The Sun, a British tabloid. The new face of the brand's Miss Dior Cherie perfume, whose first language is Hebrew and was born in Israel, decliend to comment at the Oscars, where she wore a dress by Black Swan costume designers Rodarte. On Monday, however, she issued a statement expressing her shock; and today LVMH, which owns Dior, moved to fire the designer, who also maintains a namesake fashion label.

Also facing charges of anti-Semitism this week: WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange — who's also facing rape charges in Sweden, wants to trademark his name and today saw his whistleblowing organization nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize — is (naturally) being defended by his supporters staffers.

And the third passenger on this crazy train: Charlie Sheen told Piers Morgan in an interview that aired Monday night on CNN that he regretted making remarks about Chuck Lorre, the producer of Two and a Half Men, that were interpreted as anti-Semitic.

ABC's Oscars TV ratings on Sunday dropped 10% from a year ago.

Berkshire Hathaway adds to possible successors to Warren Buffett.

Carlyle Group buys Japanese auto-parts firm. 

Charlie Sheen circus continues with part 2 of Today Show interview.

CNN is taking Piers Morgan on a roller-coaster ride. 

Dior loses as Natalie Portman severs ties with brand following anti-Semitic remarks by John Galliano.Continue reading...

It’s like “orbiting the earth’s atmosphere sort of feeling…a lovely moment,” said Colin Firth on being nominated for Best Actor for The King’s Speech. Now that he's a winner and a (literal) star in Hollywood, his value in Hollywood is projected to skyrocket.Continue reading...

OK, so the 83rd Annual Academy Awards was a bit of a snoozefest, with Colin Firth and Natalie Portman winning the best thespian categories (as expected) and The King's Speech sweeping the night.

On the commercial front, while the Oscars may not have "the Super Bowl for women" that some thought in terms of the caliber of the ads, there were some new campaigns — but also a lot of repetition and reprisals of Super Bowl spots.

What did you think of the commercials, if you caught them during the telecast on ABC? To jog your memory:Continue reading...

According to commercial rules by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences, this TV commercial for Miss Dior Chérie perfume, directed by Sofia Coppola and starring nominee Natalie Portman, can't air during the Oscars telecast near the Best Actress category.

It's fine during the red carpet pre-show broadcasts, where it has already aired during E!'s red carpet coverage — where Portman was spotted wearing Rodarte in a nod to the Mulleavy sisters' costume designs for her Black Swan outfits, which were snubbed in the Best Costume category. They are, however, on display nearby at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art.