The actual motives behind this year-long endeavor of Zuckerberg’s are yet to be seen, but shameless self-promotion comes to mind.
One of the first stops on his tour came in late April, arriving in a city and state that Zuck had never previously visited – Detroit, Michigan. To be fair, I would say that the majority of Americans living outside Motor City share this in common with the Facebook founder – but he is still catching plenty of flack for it. Detroit isn’t exactly a shining beacon of the state’s Pure Michigan tourism campaign, and for good reason. There are only a few reasons to visit Detroit in the first place, and Zuckerberg was there for one of them.
Arriving at the Ford Dearborn plant where the F-150 is currently being built, Zuckerberg had a chance to show the world he is just like the rest of us. In one of his many Facebook status updates that gloomy day in Detroit, Zuckerberg detailed part of his experience at Ford’s assembly plant. “But the most interesting part was sitting down with some of the people who do this every day. Working on the line at an assembly plant is physically hard, and the people I met talked about how tiring it is and how worn down you get.” He continued to ramble on about commoner problems that are as foreign to him as the state of Michigan itself.
As Facebook users tried to search Zuckerberg’s soul to determine whether he was showing actual empathy or feigning interest, another status update came through and effectively set the record straight: “I played a very small part in assembling some new Ford F-150s on the line by adding antennas, cleats and drilling screws. I even signed the inspection sticker on one. You’re welcome, future F-150 owner.”
You’re welcome, indeed. Just in case any of you were wondering if Zuckerberg was developing actual human emotions, fret no more! In his gray t-shirt and inflated egotistical fantasies, it’s likely that Zuck believes his signing of an inspection sticker will result in a crazy inflation of F-150 sales. Truck buyers around the country, scrambling to purchase as many 2017 F-150 pickups as they can, hoping to find that golden ticket. Insert eye roll…HERE.
As no surprise to anyone, Zuckerberg had a professional photographer on hand for the day, ensuring that no genuinely fabricated moment would go undocumented. I wonder if the photo of him signing that inspection sticker will be included with the sale of that F-150. You know, as a certificate of authenticity.
Before ending the leg of his journey in Michigan, Zuckerberg also had the chance to take a ride in an autonomous vehicle – specifically a Ford Fusion Hybrid autonomous research vehicle.
Zuckerberg’s “Year of Travel Challenge” is meant to introduce the Facebook CEO to innovations in technology that are taking place in various industries here in the United States. Surely his stint as an F-150 assembly worker helped him accomplish this mission, as well as the shameless self-promotion he is best known for.
