Why One Million Moms Tried To Cancel This Burger King Commercial
Burger King is a company that is overly familiar with controversy. The fast-food chain is known for its tongue-in-cheek marketing that pokes fun at its rivals, whether that's through tweets or TV ads. According to Voy Media, such methods have included mocking the reputation of McDonald's premier mascot, Ronald McDonald, and portraying Happy Meals as unrealistically positive. Although such purposely risky behavior definitely has its funny side (and, crucially, enables Burger King's advertisements to stand out from its rivals), negative side effects are always possible, especially when rude language is involved.
Upsetting the public is never a good idea for businesses that actually aim to make profits. Everyone is a potential customer, after all. However, The Washington Post reports that Burger King has fallen victim to its own promotional successes by courting the outrage of a moms campaign group for using a curse word. Read ahead to see how the fast-food chain got on the wrong side of a group of conservative mothers.
These moms believed Burger King's advertisement was unethical
Protest group One Million Moms took offense to the word "damn" used in a Burger King video promoting its plant-based Impossible Whopper. The ad featured a person eating the new burger and uttering the phrase, "Damn, that's good." In a statement that surely intended no puns, One Million Moms described the commercial as "irresponsible and tasteless" (via CNN).
The Washington Post notes that the campaign by One Million Moms (which regularly protests media it deems immoral or unsuitable for children) received over 9,500 supporters. The group wanted Burger King to either edit or remove its Impossible Whopper ad. However, the advertisement remains publicly available, and it can still be viewed on Burger King's official Twitter account. The New York Post explains that while "damn" was once considered to be a mighty insult against God, over the years the meaning has been watered down to such an extent that it now resembles an expression of mere annoyance.