extra texture :: marketing news + trends

Is Pepsi actually the choice of the Obama Administration? (more)

New Pepsi line drops high fructose corn syrup. (more)

Cracker Barrel puts Dolly Parton on the menu. (more)

Facebook gives users a chance to govern the site. (more)

How does Starbucks match up to Dunkin Donuts and McDonalds? (more)

Spray your tag on West Bank wall — online. (more)

Dweezil Zappa keeps his famous father’s music upfront and fresh. (more)

"It’s a big change in the fashion business to have retailers giving designers price targets — the amount they think customers want to pay — instead of letting designers price upwards from their costs," reports Teri Agins in the Wall Street Journal. (more)

Why government spending plus easy money could pull US out of recession by year’s end. (more)

Most consumers would rather purchase their games at a retail store. (more)

As stores disappear, don’t get caught up in the going-out-of-business sales, experts say. The deals aren’t always as good as they appear. (more)

Six retailers that are thriving. (more)

Many who migrated to the U.S. are returning to an economy that offers richer career opportunities. (more)

Psychedelic fish discovered in Indonesia. (more)

"I think the concept of luxury is passe," says Andres Izquieta, co-founder of Five Four, a menswear label, in a Wall Street Journal piece by Christina Binkley. (more)

Nokia is considering entering laptop industry. (more)

Upgrade your iPod to 240 GB — unofficially. (more)

BMW to develop a new navigation system that “learns” the driver’s destination of choice. (more)

Meet GarageBand’s music teacher. (more)

Online gamers keep it local, says new study. (more)

Real baseball players’ moves are captured in video games. (more)

French winemakers fear tasting ban in health rules. (more)

Yahoo to offer tools to match users, ads. (more)

Can you tell which company had which story? (more)

Shoppers’ retreat may be department stores’ ultimate defeat. (more)

Sony unveils lilac PlayStation Portable, ‘LittleBigPlanet’ game. (more)

Sit, boy, and roll over — all with the click of your thumb. (more)

Pensacola hopes a yearlong 450th birthday bash will lure visitors. (more)

In 1978, Jimmy Carter signed Senate Amendment 3534, a portion of which gave each household permission to produce up to 200 gallons of tax-exempt beer each year. (more)

American Express is offering some of its card-holders a $300 "gift card" to pay off their balances and close their accounts, reports Mary Pilon in the Wall Street Journal. (more)