Words don’t have to be this blatantly offensive to cause offense. Watching what you say isn’t as easy — or even as all-fire important

By Scott Swedenburg

It was very powerful stuff on a human level. But based on the results, it might have been too powerful. The fourth letter turned out to be the weakest in the entire series — weaker even than the final installment. Selner is retooling the letter with a softer approach.

Why it happened
Two trends might be at work here. One is that people will follow their emotions, but they also will bail when the feelings simply are too raw or hit too close to home. Some humane societies see results fall when their outer envelopes use graphic copy and photos of puppies and kittens that have been abused. Relief organizations are seeing it in lower response rates to packages with upsetting photos of ill or malnourished children.