This McDonald's commercial offends me

[edhopper]

They played it a lot during Football yesterday.

McDonald's sticking themselves into national tragedies, as if their sign is some kind of beacon of hope just turned my stomach.

I know they were going for the "We are America" vibe, no you are crappy food that makes people unhealthy and fat.

And your not a church, so the God stuff is nauseating.



(I know, what's the big deal, just a stupid commercial, but hey, sometimes you see something that just makes you vent, glad DU is here for that)

[earthside]

1. Me, too.

I noticed that yesterday.

At first I almost thought it might be a local spot for an evangelical church.

Of course, the McD signs in your face make it clear ... it is a commercial for buying more hamburgers.

The advertisement, however, demonstrates why McDonald's is in trouble -- they can't talk anymore about the quality of their product, so they have to try and distract with syrupy sentiment.

This ad is rather retro and antiquated, about thirty years too late -- all it is missing is a picture of Reagan at the end.

Yuck.

[Atman]

37. Kind of like when Walmart realized the gig was up.

They couldn't advertise their low prices anymore, because service had become horrible, shelves were going bare, and many of the prices weren't any better than Target or any other major retailer. So they switched to the touchy-feely ads about all the wonderful things they do for America. This is a "jump the shark" kind of ad a company does when they don't have anything positive to say about their actual product.

[BlueCaliDem]

2. "McDonald's...as if their sign is some kind of beacon of hope" is exactly the message they're

trying to convey to hide the fact that they're such asswipes about not raising the minimum wage.

That faux-patriotism is nothing but a marketing scheme to build up their ruined reputation. It's their M.O. In the 80's they did a lot of the Ronald McDonald House charities advertising on television to appeal to the compassionate heart of Americans while they continued offering slave-wages. This commercial is no different.

If they REALLY want to be a compassionate corporation, how about raising the minimum wage to $15 across the country? Knowing that mostly single mothers and older adults work in their business - as opposed to high school students - stop fighting it and raise the dang minimum wage already!

No. Instead, they make million-dollar "window-dressing" ads for teevee to make themselves look good.

But then again, they know their audience: the American people. And being that the people of the United States have been proven to be the second most ignorant developed country of the world (only second to Italy, but I'm certain we can boot them off their pedestal), they can do this fake crap and still get positive credit for it. Only in America!

[dawg]

10. We're the asswipes.

It's not up to corporations to raise the minimum wage. That responsibility belongs to "We the People" and the asswipes we send to Washington.

You and I probably did our parts last November, but the majority of voting-age Americans did not.

It's not McDonalds' fault.

All they do is make shitty food. (That can at times be tasty and/or convenient.)

[BlueCaliDem]

15. I know. You're correct, of course. No change if We the People don't get up and out to vote

their lackeys out of our government.

By the way...unhealthy or not...I LOVE their french fries. They are, imo, by far the best-tasting french fries in the world - and I'm comparing Dutch french fries and Belgium french fries to McDonalds -and both of those countries are known for their french fries.

YUM!

[joeglow3]

28. It extends waaaaay beyond mcdonalds.

It is a bigger issue that just fast food workers. If you pay them $15 an hour, what happens to other workers? My wife is an RN with a 4 year degree who makes $20 an hour? You really telling me an RN responsible for your health and life is only worth 33% more than a job that doesn't require a high school degree.

Sorry, but the outrage at just fast food is grossly missing the big picture and will solve little or none of the economic problems we face.

[MillennialDem]

34. We can't be divided like this. It would also make a McDonalds worker worth half as much as

me by salary.

Yes we need bigger changes than just raising the minimum wage (SOCIAL DEMOCRACY!) but don't oppose it because it doesn't go far enough. Raise the minimum wage now, work on more stuff after. Which is why it's sad democrats have been running from the ACA, our platform now should be single payer!

[BlueCaliDem]

48. Your RN wife is being underpaid.

RN's actually make GOOD money, anywhere between $65k to $110k per year with a national average of $67,930 per year. I don't understand why your wife only makes $45k. She's clearly being underpaid for her profession.

For salaries for RN's nationwide, see the info at this link: http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/registered-nurse/salary

From the link:

Salary Outlook

The BLS reports the median salary for a registered nurse was $65,470 in 2012. The best-paid 10 percent of RNs made more than $94,720, while the bottom 10 percent earned less than $45,040. In 2012, the highest median salaries were earned by nurses working in government, hospitals and home health care. By location, the highest-paid positions are clustered in the metropolitan areas of northern California, including San Jose, Vallejo and Oakland.

**snip**

Average Registered Nurse Pay vs. Other Best Jobs

In 2012, registered nurses made an average salary of $67,930, which is pretty good pay compared with some of the other health care jobs on this year’s list of the Best Jobs of 2014. That’s comparable to the pay of an occupational therapist, but less than what a physical therapist makes. Nurse practictioners usually make more money – in 2012, they earned an average salary of $91,450 – while licensed practical and vocational nurses usually make less (about $42,400).

http://money.usnews.com/careers/best-jobs/registered-nurse/salary

So maybe it would be wiser not to compare what your RN wife makes with that one employer to what fast-food workers make nationwide. That would be an unfair comparison by any measure.

[joeglow3]

51. We live in a low cost of living area and RN's are getting squeezed out

Many offices and hospitals are now just hiring MA's in our race to the bottom.

[Brickbat]

3. The God stuff is tiresome, but as someone who lives in a rural area, I find that the people who own

the couple of franchises in town are some of the most supportive and helpful of local volunteer efforts -- including using their billboards to get the word out.

[tabbycat31]

23. As a kid our local McD's franchise owner was very helpful

My dad knew him and whenever we had big Girl Scout events, he'd always donate stacks of coupons for free meals at his restaurants. The Girl Scouts were able to raise money and pay for some trips because of those coupons.

As a college student, he came and spoke to our marketing class about the ups and downs of owning a franchise.

Very nice guy. Although I only eat at the restaurants on occasion (aka when I need wifi and there's nowhere else around) I'll always have respect for him.

[sundevil2000]

87. I live in a small, rural town as well. I agree with what you have said.

The fast food joints are where people go to eat and chat.

They are often the ones who support the local schools and sports teams.

[titaniumsalute]

4. I'm not offended by their signs...I'm offended by their food. NT

[Reter]

94. + One billion!

n/t

[aikoaiko]

5. meh.

[MohRokTah]

6. McDonald's is in the franchise business.

The overwhelming majority of McDonald's locations are not owned by the corporation.

Their company is all about one thing, developing a brand and selling that brand. Due to franchise agreements, they are able to use footage from any franchise in their marketing efforts.

Don't think of them as cheap ass corporate clowns who insure they keep their employees down by only paying minimum wage.

Think of them as people whoring an image so that people paying them big franchise fees have no other choice but to pay their employees the absolute minimum because the franchise fees would drive them broke if they paid anything more.

[unblock]

32. same thing, just through an intermediary.

corporate essentially knows the finances of each franchise, and therefore knows exactly how to set the various franchise fees so that they share as little of the revenue with the franchise and its employees as possible.

part of the reason for having 15% of their stores company-owned is so they keep in touch with market conditions and costs, so they know how to tweak their franchise costs.

[olddots]

7. alot of people have been lead to believe

That Mc Donalds is food and Wal mart is commerce

[HappyMe]

8. Meh.

A bit of a first world problem.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

9. I'm not offended by it. But I do find it bit too....masterbatory? nt

[kcr]

11. Yes, and that seems to be a big trend in advertising lately

Ad companies have hired on cult leaders as consultants.

[yeoman6987]

12. We just left McDonalds from breakfast

2 hour delay in Indiana so I took my 3 nephews and niece to have a late breakfast. I even bought my 1st grade niece a breakfast to take to her teacher. The food is fine as long as it is a treat and not daily consumed.

[nichomachus]

52. A chicken McNugget

has 38 ingredients. Only a small percentage is actually chicken. Many are variations on corn products. And a handful come from petrochemicals. Yum!

[yeoman6987]

54. Why are they so damn tasty. Lol.

[nichomachus]

64. They're really not.

You don't savor McDonald's food. You just kind of wolf it down. It has the illusion of tasty.

[edhopper]

66. True

the food is engineered to hit several taste points at once, fatty, salty, sweet etc..
It is he false perception of good taste.

[HappyMe]

69. Isn't hitting all those tastes called umami?

[edhopper]

71. Yes and no

the Japanese idea has to do with deep, complex flavors that emerge as you eat something.
McDonald's is trying for a reaction based on things like salt and deep fry fat that gives their food an instant "snap' but no long term satisfaction.

Think of the adrenalin rush from exercise as opposed to cocaine.

[HappyMe]

72. I still enjoy the occassional burger from McDonald's.

All I get from exercise is tired and sometimes sore.

[edhopper]

73. Truthfully

their food is beside the point and maybe for another thread.

The use of national tragedies to sell that crap is what I find reprehensible.

We did not get through 9/11, Katrina or Sandy because of McDs.

[HappyMe]

76. No, I don't think that that is what they are saying.

I think that they are saying that the McDonald's employees and stores went through those things with the rest of us. Like it or not, the people that work there have sympathy and suffer tragedy, celebrate births, and help with charity work - they are a part of the community.
The one in the small town in WI where I visited over the holidays had put up a "Good Luck at the Sate Fair, Susan" sign. The girl was going to the equestrian competition. I don't think that that is wrong.

[edhopper]

80. If it was only signs for people in the community

or employees, I would let it pass. They clearly use national tragedies to a great extent here.

Watch it again.

[HappyMe]

81. So expressing sympathy over a national tragedy is wrong?

I'm sorry, but a McDonald's commercial doesn't even move my outrage meter.

[edhopper]

82. My sense

is they were saying that through all that, McDonalds is still there. That they helped get us through. McDonalds=America.

I am not saying this is something everyone should be offended by as well (I am not outraged, I am nauseated)
Some here agree, some don't, either way I am only expressing my opinion.
I have no problem with you not disliking it.

[HappyMe]

68. lol! Okay then.

Of course.

I have seen people eat pretty fast there, and also slow there. I myself tend to eat a bit slowly, no matter what.

[Reter]

95. You were on a roll until you went there

It's toxic, but it is pretty damn delicious. Not illusion, it's just a sad fact that unhealthy things taste great.

[edhopper]

98. see post #66

[Erose999]

65. I worked at a "mom and pop" local place that used soy in their ground beef as an extender. Its not

always the chains that are doing this type of thing.

[Dreamer Tatum]

13. You are easily offended. nt

[Initech]

16. +1

I saw that commercial and didn't think much of it.

[840high]

57. I didn't either.

[LanternWaste]

20. It's fun to pretend we know what should or should not offend someone else.

It's fun to pretend we know what should or should not offend someone else.

[Dreamer Tatum]

43. I don't think a commercial should offend anyone. I don't see how it's fun, however. nt

[BlueStater]

55. Off topic but why do you always repeat your post title in your message? n/t

[SickOfTheOnePct]

90. I was just about to ask the same thing n/t

[WillowTree]

49. But.......being offended (or, even outraged) is the favorite passtime for some around these parts

Personally, I have better, and more positive ways to spend my time.

[onenote]

85. +1

[GreatGazoo]

14. I guess they don't want to talk about their food right now

The U.S. sales drop marked the seventh straight month of declines and was the steepest since 2001. The company had posted a 1 percent drop for October. Global same-store sales fell 2.2 percent last month, worse than the 1.7 percent drop predicted by analysts.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2014-12-08/mcdonald-s-monthly-sales-trail-estimates-as-u-s-slump-deepens.html

They are especially hammered by trends away from soda and fries -- their two biggest profit items.

[BlueCaliDem]

17. But I LOVE their french fries! It's the ONLY item I ever buy from them!

[URL=http://www.sherv.net/][IMG][/IMG][/URL]

[abakan]

74. I'll start eating at micky D's when their food looks like the pictures...

Otherwise it's french fries and coffee for me.

[BlueCaliDem]

78. And soft serve ice cream in the summer. Love that stuff, too, although I have to watch my dairy

intake. But dayum if it ain't true...McD's french fries are incredibly good.

[HappyMe]

22. Sorry, but I really like those french fries

and a soda to go with it. Maybe even a quarter pounder with cheese too. As long as you don't eat it every day...

[GreatGazoo]

27. their fries are legendary which is why the problem is so bad for them.

part of it is economics. The Dollar Menu was holding sales up a little but they have tried to phase that out in most places and get people back on the combo meals which add $3 to $4 for the coke and fries. Many more people are cutting back.

They are cutting the menu options back and trying to go more Chipotle-ish:

McDonald’s Corp. executives said Wednesday they will cut eight items from its menu in January as part of a broader effort to overhaul its service model to meet the needs of different type of customers...

http://nrn.com/food-trends/mcdonalds-cut-8-menu-items-january

[HappyMe]

33. I saw a few commercials for the dollar menu

and they have added a couple of items to it. I don't eat there that often.

I haven't ever eaten at a Chipotle, so I don't know what they have.

[GreatGazoo]

42. Chipotle is burritos (mostly) and uses a set up similar to Subway where you pick what you

want and don't want on it while ordering. Chipotle has been hammering on fast food even while they grab market share. They consider themselves "fast casual" which seems to mean that they aren't as family friendly as MD and their average meal is around $9 versus $6 for MD.

They are slick marketers who tell the public what they want to hear about health, sustainability and animal welfare:

[HappyMe]

44. I have a good family owned place here for burritos if I want one.

It costs way less than $9 too.
Telling people what they want to hear is part of advertising. I guess that was an okay commercial, if a bit preachy and heavy handed.

[GreatGazoo]

45. good advertising tells the truth and sells the difference

they are selling the difference there but the Scarecrow ad was picked apart on whether or not it "tells the truth."

Gotta love family-owned places! good for you.

[HappyMe]

46. They can say that it's telling the truth.

How the hell would we know that it was or wasn't?

[A Round Tuit]

39. ...their fries are legendary...

Actually, I throw out the fries and eat the box they came in.

Same difference.

(Are they even potatoes?)

[Sunlei]

60. It is the drinks that are mostly profit. McDs is lucky their fries are legendary.

[Marr]

30. Yeah, same here.

I'm a health nut, but I go to McDonald's maybe once a week or once every couple of weeks. It's nothing but fat and salt, I know, but it's delicious.

[HappyMe]

36. Yeah, I know it's no good.

But I am not going to apologize for liking it sometimes.

[Arugula Latte]

18. Yuck.

Another reason not to eat at McDonald's, as if there weren't a bazillion already.

[Paladin]

19. Trying to pose as some sort of national icon....to offset falling sales. (nt)

[jeff47]

21. You might want to take a closer look at their menu.

For example, if you're looking for a salad that isn't utterly wilted garbage, I've found McDonalds to be the most reliable national choice. Obviously, one can find local places that are even better, but sometimes you're passing through and don't know the local options.

Yes, they produce some unhealthy crap. They also have some healthy non-crap. The other national fast food chains have wilted garbage they sell as "healthy".

[Ykcutnek]

24. I just finished up a marketing class.

Although their food disgusts me, except their breakfast, this ad does everything right.

[Mosby]

25. I like it.

Thanks for sharing it with us.

[EX500rider]

63. That's funny, me too!

[Mosby]

83. This video shows how corpoations try to manipulate you in ads

[onenote]

86. so your problem isn't with this ad, but with all advertising

ok, then.

[joeglow3]

26. This offended you?

I can't imagine what it would take for me to be offended by that.

[Glassunion]

89. I know right?

[itsrobert]

29. I don't like when a business uses tragedies or the military to sell product

This one uses both. Shame on McDonalds.

[ScreamingMeemie]

31. I actually liked the "local" ones, and I always think it is nice when franchise owners

take part in what is going on in the community through their signs.

I'm talking about the "Happy Birthday Woody" sign and the "We'll be back soon sign."

Many times, especially in small towns, these guys are not the "corporate monster." This is Joe, who started out behind the counter in 1985 and worked his way up, took advantage of an opportunity to buy a franchise and did.

Yeah, I worked for McDonald's for quite a while as a youth. My mother was a manager. Sue me.

[upaloopa]

35. I suggest you don't eat there.

Probably a lot of people don't like the signs but just as likely a lot of people do.
There is nothing wrong with a little good will and cheerleading even though it is also commercial.
I'll just say it is ok by me.

[Kalidurga]

38. This does not even come close to meeting my threshold for outrage.

It's a bit overly sentimental for my taste though, but then most commercials are. This one is almost Hallmark sappy.

[RoverSuswade]

40. I hadn't seen this until now.

I don't have a problem with the commercial - it's rather tasteful (no pun intended) - especially the music.
.
One must have what I call "McDonalds discipline." Visit maybe once a month for a BigMac, fries, and drink. I confess I do like the fish sandwich. If you eat it slow it fills you up and becomes a filling meal. Get a water with it instead of a cola.

[arcane1]

41. They remember 9/11? I'm so impressed!

If not for this commercial, I would've completely forgotten about 9/11

[cherokeeprogressive]

47. I actually ate there this morning. I'm "down the mountain" for a doctor visit.

It was like a beacon in the darkness... sustenance in my time of need. If not for McDonalds I might have been hungry for minutes longer than I was.

Their sign, when it was visible in the dark fog was like a gift from God.

I couldn't imagine life without Ronald McDonald.

[tabasco]

50. That is truly nauseating.

I'm sure the marketing people got a big bonus for it, though.

[progressoid]

53. Why do you hate 'Murica!?1

[uppityperson]

56. It is easier to put slogans on signs than pay your workers a living wage.

[peace13]

58. Saw the too.

Mickey D's has hit......rock bottom! The Fox News of food service.

[RockaFowler]

59. Deadspin has a good take on it

http://theconcourse.deadspin.com/the-new-mcdonalds-ad-is-bullshit-1678998566/+bubbaprog

Whether you watched football or the Golden Globes yesterday, you were likely exposed to a new McDonald's ad that featured inspirational messages ("BOSTON STRONG," "HUG THOSE DADS," etc.) from the fast-food company's readerboards around the country. (We made our own, more honest version of the ad, which you can watch below.) This ad is bullshit.

Scoring it with a beyond-corny children's-choir version of fun.'s "Carry On" is bad enough. (Good luck maintaining that indie cred, Nate Ruess.) But using 9/11 and other various national (and personal) tragedies to sell hamburgers is a craven manipulation that, of course, is working perfectly.

But when we say this ad is bullshit, that's not just a personal judgment. While McDonald's has set up a Tumblr to "tell the stories behind the signs," one sign in particular—the one at the top of this post—is never explained. Why? Because that photo comes from an ancient Angelfire website about some dude's hiking trip in New Hampshire. That McDonald's does not even exist anymore. It is a failed McDonald's. It closed years ago. It takes a special level of incompetence to fail as a McDonald's proprietor. It takes a special level of marketing-asshole dishonesty to sell that failure back to us as a triumph of the human spirit.



Their McDonald's video is pretty funny

[edhopper]

67. Thanks for the link

my favorite comment from there;

The McRib is made from workers who tried to unionize!

[Vattel]

61. Yeah, okay, that made me vomit too.

[Fawke Em]

62. I agree with you.

Saw it yesterday getting my nails done (I guess I don't watch the channels it would usually show on, so it was the first I'd seen it) and I just felt revulsion.

...kind of like I do with their food.

[herding cats]

70. Other than the tumblr link and music, I'm not seeing this as reaching out to millennials

The content is more boomer and to a lesser extent gen-x fodder with that suburban Americana feel. They're still not getting the demographic they're supposed to be rebranding to try and reach.

I can see what they were trying to do, but they didn't quite hit it on the head. Like their food, it was a recognizable attempt at what it was supposed to be, but it seemed a bit off and wasn't very satisfying.

I'm not offended by it, just unenthusiastic.

[kwassa]

75. When I encounter tragedy, I run out and buy a Big Mac!

The glue that holds this country together.

[Ace Rothstein]

77. The only thing that offended me was using a terrible song and making it even worse.

[RebelOne]

79. Only the religious references offend me.

It doesn't matter because I'm a vegetarian and don't eat at McDonald's anyway. Even when I was meat eater, I would never eat McDonald's fast food because I knew the junk that was in those hamburgers.

[Avalux]

84. I wasn't offended, it had an alternate-reality quality to it.

There wasn't anything about the commercial that would make me think that the corporation 'has a heart' and 'believes in god', therefore I'll want to eat there. I watched it and had the opposite reaction, it just seemed icky and strange and incredibly out of touch, in a bad way.

[Glassunion]

88. .

[onecent]

91. LOL LOL LOL This is Hilarious!!!!! We don't have any of the old McDonald

signs at any of the McDonalds in the Kansas city Area...now the restaurants look like
a place to stop and check in with your passport before you enter our city. All of them are
bland...flat top...no M sign....
I figure the future generations of young children won't be as impressed with McDonalds
without the red and yellow sign and clown and the whole McDonald advertising of the toy (to choke on) and the room with the balls, where mothers have told me it smells like urine in those places....ugh

[jimlup]

92. Yeah I agree but couldn't put my finger on exactly why

thank you for verbalizing it.

[edhopper]

93. Watching football all day

I saw it three or four times. Made me think why it seemed so wrong.

[Reter]

96. If the world was like DU, would you alert the commercial as offensive?

Or better yet, would a jury vote to hide it as inappropriate? Will this post be alerted?

[edhopper]

97. Probably not

I have only alerted a few times in my ten years here, usually for obvious trolls.
I prefer to shine the light of reason on post I find offensive. Or I just ignore them.