KFC Pulls "Racist" Australian TV spot

Thinking about other motivations for my depth of feeling...

Issues of Australian racism seem to get extraordinarily unbalanced international coverage. I don't quite understand why.

India is warning it's students not to study here because racism is making it unsafe, and today one of their newspapers featured our local police in KKK uniform.

Situations like this KFC thing cannot possibly do anything other than re-inforce the international perception that we are backwards and racist country far more than we actually are. In that light, it's irresponsible of KFC not to have strongly defended the ad.

0 Replies

@aidan,

aidan wrote:

Quote:
We don't even realize that it's a lighter skinned man surrounded by darker skinned ones, because it has nothing to do with the ad!!

Why is a lone white man surrounded by these musically adept and loud black people? Are they at a concert- or are they at a cricket game?

They're at a cricket game. A cricket game in the West Indies, or in Sri Lanka, or in India, or in Bangladesh, or in Pakistan, will have people beating drums and blowing trumpets. May I suggest that you not comment on a culture that you obviously no ******* NOTHING ABOUT. For **** sake get over yourself.

1 Reply

@ebrown p,

That doesn't have the cultural impact that fast food chain invasions have. That doesn't change the way a country's people looks, or make sweeping changes to their cuisine.

I was taken aback by the American chains impact on Costa Rican culture. Here they have McDonalds, which I expected, but they also have:

Taco Bell
Burger King
Wendys
Pizza Hut
Papa Johns
Fridays
Applebees
KFC
Church's (I think, they have some other fried chicken brand that was not a typical international chain)
Subway
Quiznos
Denny's
Tony Romas
Outback
Hooters

I was expecting a sprinkling of McDonalds, instead it's a significant part of their cuisine now (most of them do home delivery too, you can get McDonalds by phone here) and I'd rather have Vegemite any day.

1 Reply

@Green Witch,

Green Witch wrote:

It does create a moment of feeling that the one white guy is patronizing the black crowd. It could easily be fixed by throwing in a few white people and Diest TKO.

NO IT DOESN'T. Because it's not aimed at your racially stereotyped culture. Not one person of any race in Australia was offended. You've got no idea what you're talking about.

0 Replies

@Robert Gentel,

There is no question that you are right Robert (and the Vegemite was fully tongue in cheek to counteract the disgust that dlowan expressed at KFC).

I just got back from Mexico and I can't understand why Taco Bell's in Mexico (when the real thing from Taco stands all over are so incredibly delicious).

There is some cross pollination. In Boston there are home businesses that sell the most delicious authentic tamales, gorditas and arepas. Even the business model is authentically Latin American (although it is all word of mouth). My family often enjoys these foods for gatherings or holidays.

We also have Asian markets where you can buy meat hanging from hooks and fish sold in ways that are not traditionally American.

There is no doubting the impact of big American corporations... but there is a bit of sharing in the other direction that makes America a little more interesting.

1 Reply

@ebrown p,

Huge vegemite outlets do not infest most major intersections, and vegemite does not invest millions in trying to get people in other countries to shovel it down their throats.

0 Replies

@ebrown p,

ebrown p wrote:

I just got back from Mexico and I can't understand why Taco Bell's in Mexico (when the real thing from Taco stands all over are so incredibly delicious).

Just thinking about the "Parados" taco stand in DF makes me want to go back.....

Thankfully I didn't see Taco Bell there and that Mexico's culinary culture is so strong that it won't really kill it off. Costa Rica's culinary culture is not nearly as strong though.

Quote:

There is no doubting the impact of big American corporations... but there is a bit of sharing in the other direction that makes America a little more interesting.

Yeah, I don't object to the fact that American cuisine is invading other countries, I object to American culinary exports being junk food. In America I love how diverse the available food is, eating in America is pretty good stuff but our culinary exports largely consist of our worst food.

1 Reply

@Robert Gentel,

Quote:

Yeah, I don't object to the fact that American cuisine is invading other countries, I object to American culinary exports being junk food.

What specifically US dishes would you like to see exported? I mean, that would be different from local foods?

I have to say, the fast food exports we get from you guys, plus descriptions of the food, and a lot of the recipes I see posted here, I find very unattractive.

I loved the food in New York and Washington....but the variety was little different from what I can get here, and we lived, really, on Asian and Middle eastern. And Italian...had some fabulous lunches.

The specifically US stuff I had was a clam chowder (not a good example of it I guess, since I found it very tasteless), soft-shell crab, which was nice, and muffiny things...they weren't called muffins...that were served as breakfast every morning in Washington. They were ok, but to me, impossible to stomach in the morning.

The delicatessen was way cool! There was more of it, and more variety.

Had a famous New York pretzel, from a stand. Ptooey! Tasteless and inedible.

Tried a New York hot dog too....ptooey ditto...

I am really interested in the kind of food you would recommend that is specifically US.

I don't like Mexican food, even after a number of attempts, though it may be way different in the states (and in Mexico, of course!)

1 Reply

@dlowan,

dlowan wrote:

What specifically US dishes would you like to see exported? I mean, that would be different from local foods?

I like American breakfasts best. I also like some of their casserole dishes (e.g. green bean casserole) a bit, BBQ can be good, chicken-fried steak, gravy, cheesecake (the American one is different from the Italian one), granola rocks (but that is actually fairly well exported), tex-mex (Chili con carne), and then just all the fusion (e.g. California-style taco stands aren't the same as Taco Bell or authentic Mexican food).

Quote:

I loved the food in New York and Washington....but the variety was little different from what I can get here, and we lived, really, on Asian and Middle eastern. And Italian...had some fabulous lunches.

Most of the time in America I am eating things that aren't American cuisine, but that I don't have here. There are two Indian restaurants in this country that I know of (both good) and one Thai restaurant that I know of (bears little resemblance to Thai food). I really like just how much variety they have there, and for you it might not be as marked a difference in a more cosmopolitan setting.

Quote:

The delicatessen was way cool! There was more of it, and more variety.

I miss good cold cuts here.

Quote:

I am really interested in the kind of food you would recommend that is specifically US.

Thanksgiving dinner may represent the best of what I consider typical American eats but that is not much different from UK Christmas feasts that made its way to Australia too. So maybe I'd recommend good junk food (I am not against burgers and hot dogs so much as shitty ones), good sandwiches (a good deli and a great pastrami sandwich makes one understand why I resent subway), American BBQ is probably not too different either, so that really just leaves soul food and tex-mex I think, if you are going for stuff that's originally American. But there is a lot more options than anywhere else I know, and some interesting fusions. I like eating in American not so much because its cuisine is the best but because the best of the world's cuisine is usually represented fairly well in comparison to other places.

Quote:

I don't like Mexican food, even after a number of attempts, though it may be way different in the states (and in Mexico, of course!)

It's one of my favorite cuisines! In Mexico itself it's also hugely varied (as opposed to elsewhere where it gets simplified to burritos and tacos).

Edit: I also think America has some pretty damn good fried chicken! But I don't think that's a US creation.

1 Reply

@Robert Gentel,

I love the fusion...here it is mainly European/Asian fusion.

What's an American breakfast?

You'd really like eating in big cities in Oz, I think.

I am not aware of any soul food outlets...so I know nothing about it.

Ah...just googled and there are several quite close to me! And cooking lessons.

Our Mexican restaurants do a big variety of dishes. I don't HATE it...just find it dull. Maybe they do them badly?

I'll never try a hotdog again!

I like real hamburgers.....(on the exceedingly rare occasion I eat beef)...

Love good sandwiches.

3 Replies

Just wantes to post this video from the originator(s) of the controvesy.
In my opinion the girl still doesn't "get" what she's done that is so wrong.

0 Replies

@dlowan,

"What's an American breakfast?"

good god.

google Denny's, rabbit.

it gets better from there...

1 Reply

@dlowan,

Quote:

What's an American breakfast?

poptarts?

Quote:

I like real hamburgers.....(on the exceedingly rare occasion I eat beef)...

with beetroot?. because...you can root a beet but cant beat a root.

0 Replies

@Robert Gentel,

Ok.

There seems to be some weird disconnect here.

Do you think it reasonable to call Australians racist for not reacting to US stuff like some special horrible significance to fried chicken?

Do you think it reasonable to call Australians racist for not having some stereotype of darker folk having fun being racist somehow?

(I have some grasp of this, because I have some vague recall of it being a US "thing" that dem darkies was happy singing in de fields)

I doubt the current generation of Ozzians would have any understanding of this, unless they were literature freaks, or studied US history.

I think I cop it reasonably sweet when we are called racist when we are......I don't think not being innocent of the minutiae of racism as it is defined in in the US is being racist.

Clarifying question:

Do you think Australians are being labelled racist here

or

do you think KFC is being defined as racist here?

1 Reply

@dlowan,

dlowan wrote:

What's an American breakfast?

Most of the time cereal, but the one I refer to is best taken as a brunch, and is usually some combination of:

eggs (any way you want them)
bacon or sausage
pancakes and syrup (I don't usually use much syrup, just the butter. I also don't usually eat them all)
toast/english muffin/bagel and butter, cream cheese or jelly
hashbrowns

Just a little heavier on the carbs and meats than the Australian one (which is a damn good breakfast in its own right) in other words.

Quote:

You'd really like eating in big cities in Oz, I think.

Probably. There'd likely be some missing cuisine (maybe Mexican fusions?) I really like but I'm pretty happy in most big cities (but don't currently live in a country that has one).

Quote:

Our Mexican restaurants do a big variety of dishes. I don't HATE it...just find it dull. Maybe they do them badly?

Do you hate beans? That could be a problem. But I'd never describe Mexican food as dull. Costa Rican food is dull, and largely uses the same base ingredients of meat, rice, tortillas and beans. But Mexican food is a really damn good.

Quote:

I'll never try a hotdog again!

Do you like good sausages? Hot dogs rock. I love Chicago-style hot dogs, or Brazil-style.

Quote:

I like real hamburgers.....(on the exceedingly rare occasion I eat beef)...

Love good sandwiches.

Yeah, well the hamburgers and sandwiches are probably the bulk of what Americans eat and there are great options for these everywhere.

Man we are off on a tangent!

1 Reply

@Rockhead,

Rockhead wrote:

"What's an American breakfast?"

good god.

google Denny's, rabbit.

it gets better from there...

I just had a look.

It looks utterly DISGUSTING to me!!!

Fat, fat, processed meat, nitrates, meat, fat, butter, fat...fat eggs...fat, simpke carbs and fat, and more fat.

Ewwwww.

I would be vomiting all day if I ate that for breakfast! Its even grosser than the English Breakfast!!!!

Do you have some url that would change my impression?

I might be able to stomach SOME of that if heavily stoned at 4 am.

2 Replies

Just a note to say that it took until snoods post Page3(?) to actually understand that the concern with the advert was about black people and fried chicken. I still dont fully understand why that is a racial stereotype but can accept that it is in the US.

I'd like to know who made the advert.
The ad agency is probably australian KFC australia marketing department is probably Australian. These people would not have give the advert a second thought.
Even though the company is American by birthright there would have been no American input into the decision making that led to the advert appearing.
So i cant place blame for being racist at the feet of KFC.

3 Replies

@dlowan,

"I might be able to stomach SOME of that if heavily stoned at 4 am."

ding, ding, ding...

you've just described their core demographic.

I DID say it gets better from there.

(but it is high fat and kinda the rest too, just more tastier...)

0 Replies

@Robert Gentel,

Quote:

Man we are off on a tangent!

Well, the whole thing's ferked.

Tangents seem good to me.

I love beans...but in soups and such, really.

I hate fat, heavy meat or cruelly raised meat, heavily processed foods, canned and salty and chemically drenched foods, sugared foods, simple carbs.

0 Replies

@dadpad,

KFC is owned by Pepsi.

0 Replies

KFC Pulls "Racist" Australian TV spot

Related Topics

Quick Links

My Account

able2know