Ever seen one of those really, really, off TV or print ads where all you can do is think “How on earth did that get approved?“
This is a textbook example of one of those.
A team of people conceived the concept. Someone wrote the copy. A production crew shot the footage. Post-production units edited it, applied special effects, and added titles to it. And then someone in the corporate hierarchy approved the ad which then aired on national TV in South Africa.
And, apparently, at no point during that process did someone sit up and state “Hey, guys. This probably isn’t a very good idea.”
KFC South Africa launched a new ad campaign centred around the theme of “next level awesome,” and produced a TV ad that spoofed champion Australian surfer Mick Fanning‘s very real, and very frightening tangle with a shark from back in July.
You’ll be utterly ~shocked~ to hear that Fanning’s family aren’t terribly chuffed on the idea of Mick’s brush with death being used to shill the all new “Jacked Up Double Crunch” burger, and are preparing to launch legal action to get the campaign cut short.
Fanning’s Mum, Elizabeth Osborne, spoke to Fairfax Media about the issue, and did not mince her words one little bit.
“I think it is very disrespectful. They’ve put a lookalike in the video. It really brings back a lot of trauma for everybody who has been attacked by a shark.”
“Some families have had fatalities and some people are still absolutely scarred without limbs. It’s disrespectful to them and Mick is not at all happy with that.”
It would appear that KFC South Africa did not seek permission from Fanning before parodying the incident – which, given that it does *technically* sit in the bounds of parody, they were not obliged to do.
Still, there’s being adept at parody, and then there’s being an unfunny jerk.
Fanning’s family is preparing legal action to get the ad pulled. The World Surfing League has also allegedly made contact with the Fanning camp, informing them that they believe the ad breaches its rules of fair use.
via SMH.
