WebMD Parent Company Video Goes Viral for All the Wrong Reasons to Demand Employees Return to Office

Internet Brands, the L.A.-based corporation that owns WebMD and dozens of other digital publications and services, went viral this week for all the wrong reasons: releasing a poorly produced, cringeworthy company video essentially demanding employees return to the El Segundo office after years of remote work, initially due to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

"I want to leave you with this: We aren't asking or negotiating at this point, or informing of how we need to work together going forward," says CEO Bob Brisco a minute-and-a-half into a video that tries really hard to make working in a cubicle or conference room look super fun, complete with dancing and even colorful tropical shirts. 

"It's, again, for the simple reason that great companies are great by great people working together and seeing each other eye to eye in tackling the big tasks," Brisco continued. "Thank you in advance for this help."

WebMD's senior vice president of consumer services added, "We're better when we're together, and we need to be our best to crush the competition." CUT TO:

Awkward corporate videos are nothing new in America, though. We've all seen them. Ever work at a chain restaurant? The training and safety videos are always so much fun to sit through. This one is soundtracked by a version of a ritual chant used by the Mardi Gras Indians. A chorus of voices sing "Joc-a-mo-fee-no-ah-nah-nay, Joc-a-mo-fee-nah-nay," which can be translated to "we mean business" or "don't mess with us" — a point Internet Brands stresses in the captions over employees dancing.

More Perfect Union got a hold of the video above and shared it on that social media platform that used to be called Twitter. (Are these things still called tweets, by the way? Xs? Elons? Musks?) The irony here, as many comments have pointed out, is it appears that much of the video was shot in front of a green screen, not in the actual office rooms company executives are demanding employees start utilizing again instead of Google Meet — because they mean business.

For the record, Los Angeles magazine's parent company, Engine Vision Media, also implemented new policy for employees to start working from the office four days a week at the start of 2024. Our amazing office manager simply sent a kindly worded email, and so far, compliance has not been an issue and no demands have been sent via video. But maybe we'll band together to negotiate a welcome back video of our own, because this Internet Brands video just made my day. Morale must be surging there. I'm inspired, and already typing up an office memo requesting mandatory office dance breaks, effective Tuesday. 

Anyway, the real story here are the hilarious responses, which is what has always made Twitter, er, uh, X (or whatever it's going to be called if it becomes a dating app) so much fun at its best – or a cesspool of hate at its worst. Enjoy some gems: