Govee included a book on ‘white supremacy’ in its website imagery
Govee included a book on ‘white supremacy’ in its website imagery
Govee 在其网站图片中包含了一本关于“白人至上主义”的书籍
Companies often include background props in their product imagery that serve as set dressing, but one of Govee’s decorative choices is raising some eyebrows. An eagle-eyed Verge reader spotted that two copies of a book with “white supremacy” plastered on the spine were included in a lifestyle image on Govee’s website, in a scene that seemingly depicts a child’s bedroom.
企业在产品图片中经常会加入一些背景道具作为装饰，但 Govee 的一个装饰选择却引发了争议。一位眼尖的《The Verge》读者发现，Govee 网站上的一张生活方式图片中，出现了两本脊背上印有“白人至上主义”（white supremacy）字样的书籍，而该场景似乎描绘的是一间儿童卧室。
You’d be forgiven for assuming that this is the result of some failed generative AI experiment, or the work of a rogue designer. (The image didn’t contain any C2PA and SynthID data when we checked, but that doesn’t necessarily rule out that something was generated with AI tools.) But according to Govee, the image was actually sourced from an undisclosed “third-party licensed library.”
如果你认为这是生成式 AI 实验失败的结果，或者是某个不负责任的设计师的作品，这完全可以理解。（我们检查时，该图片不包含任何 C2PA 和 SynthID 数据，但这并不排除它是使用 AI 工具生成的可能性。）但据 Govee 称，该图片实际上来源于一个未公开的“第三方授权图库”。
“However, we recognize that our internal review and approval process did not meet the standard required,” Govee PR manager Connie Liu said in a statement to The Verge. “We are taking immediate steps to strengthen our processes to ensure this does not happen again.”
Govee 公关经理 Connie Liu 在给《The Verge》的一份声明中表示：“我们承认，我们的内部审核和批准流程未达到应有的标准。我们正在采取紧急措施加强流程，以确保此类事件不再发生。”
A cursory look at archived versions of the website suggests the image had been live since at least April 11th. It has since been pulled from Govee’s website, shortly after we sent our inquiry.
粗略查看该网站的存档版本显示，这张图片至少从 4 月 11 日起就已经上线。在我们发出询问后不久，该图片已从 Govee 网站上撤下。
“We sincerely apologize for the offensive content contained in this image. As soon as we became aware of the matter, the image was immediately removed from the Govee website,” said Liu. “We are committed to ensuring all content on our platforms aligns with our core values of respect and integrity, and we take this matter extremely seriously.”
Liu 表示：“对于图片中包含的冒犯性内容，我们深表歉意。一旦我们意识到这个问题，该图片便立即从 Govee 网站上移除。我们致力于确保平台上的所有内容符合我们尊重和诚信的核心价值观，并将极其严肃地处理此事。”
The book in question does appear to be a real publication, resembling a collection of essays titled State of White Supremacy: Racism, Governance, and the United States. That’s far less nefarious than presumed, but still a wildly unfortunate and questionable cover to include without such context about its content. Especially on an image that’s promoting pretty decorative lighting for a kid’s room? For what it’s worth, the other book in the image (titled Another Art Book) is also a genuine book by Jefferson Hack, despite the cover being displayed backward.
涉事书籍确实是一本真实的出版物，看起来像是名为《白人至上主义的状态：种族主义、治理与美国》（State of White Supremacy: Racism, Governance, and the United States）的论文集。这比预想的要少一些恶意，但在缺乏内容背景的情况下，将其封面展示出来仍然是非常不幸且令人质疑的。尤其是在一张宣传儿童房精美装饰灯的图片中？值得一提的是，图片中的另一本书（名为《另一本艺术书》Another Art Book）也是 Jefferson Hack 所著的真实书籍，尽管封面是反着放的。
More bizarrely, this isn’t the first time that this exact book has caused similar controversy. British hardware retailer B&Q issued an apology back in 2023 after the book was featured on its website for a radiator cover listed by a third-party vendor. B&Q said at the time that the product image “was not picked up by our screening process.”
更离奇的是，这已经不是这本书第一次引发类似的争议了。2023 年，英国五金零售商 B&Q 在其网站上展示了一款由第三方供应商提供的暖气罩，图片中出现了这本书，随后 B&Q 发表了道歉声明。B&Q 当时表示，该产品图片“未被我们的筛选流程发现”。