I thought that the "White is Coming" ad campaign Sony launched was a really, really bad idea. Sony is now finding out just how brain dead an idea it is: The NAACP is complaining (quite rightly, I think) about it now:
"The days of blacks being portrayed in minstrel shows are long gone, and with good reason," said Rick Callender, chapter president. "The minstrel show was an awful chapter in history and this ad smacks of that age and time. It is even further unacceptable that some corporations still think it is okay to use racially charged media images. The latest Sony ad conjures up bad memories of when stereotypical and offensive images of people of color were accepted means of selling a product. Sony should immediately apologize and discontinue these archaic, advertising tactics."
You have to wonder about both the ad execs and the corporate execs who okayed this campaign (follow the link to see the image - I'm not about to copy it here). Just how clueless do you have to be to think that it wouldn't offend large numbers of people?
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