No one is surprised.
The other day I wrote a blog about how I felt that the new McDonald’s ad airing in France was a step in the right direction for corporate media. I received a lot of comments. Just to clarify, I wasn’t defending the food (I am a vegan and vehemently opposed to the way McDonald’s treats the animals, laborers, and environment in making their food.) This isn’t about that. I could write for hours on that topic and how angry I am at McDonald’s and other corporations like them. But, this was about something positive that I felt they accomplished. This was about their acknowledgment of people from all walks of life, and that everyone is welcome to “come as they are” and enjoy their product. Yes, good marketing strategy, but still, it was refreshing to see.
Well, not according to Bill O’Reilly and his pretty blond sidekick. They start off their discussion of the ad with a statistic of how 10% of the population is gay and some random, nameless “gay activist” asking ‘what does being gay have to do with selling burgers?’ The woman goes on to say that she finds the ad “confusing” and since she isn’t a gay male, she can’t relate. I don’t see what is confusing about the ad, and you don’t have to be a gay man to relate to the emotion he feels when speaking to his lover. Love is universal.
Bill, of course, tries to make the commercial into a political statement. It isn’t a political statement. There are no associations with politics in the ad. This is a SOCIAL statement. Maybe Bill needs a dictionary to learn the difference in meaning. Making a social statement through advertising is nothing new and happens constantly. There are plenty of sexist ads out there, on American television, and I don’t hear Bill complaining about those. Why is it that the “gay ad” in France gets him all riled up? The lady doth protest too much, methinks!
Then, he adamantly states that this ad “will NEVER run in the United States” and she sort of agrees, and adds that the commercial has an “overreaching” statement, being “come as you are.” I find her use of that word “overreaching” very interesting, indeed. Doesn’t that word also sound politically motivated? Like the government is overreaching? Why would you use that word in the context of this commercial? Who exactly overreached? McDonald’s? How so? Bill is trying to create a political commentary out of a social commentary and it doesn’t work. To state that an ad like this would NEVER run in the US is embarrassing. I would hope an ad as benign and friendly as this one would find a place on American television, and I wonder, yet again, what he is so afraid of?
Yet, my favorite part of this nonsense is when his sidekick mentions that this is one of several ads running featuring their new campaign showcasing all walks of life enjoying McDonald’s. Bill seems to think that what’s next would be an Al-Qaeda ad. This is totally out of left field, totally absurd, and makes absolutely no sense in the context of the commercial or even in the context of their discussion. It seems as if he just really wanted to somehow politicize this commercial, couldn’t, so just threw the words “Al-Qaeda” in for good measure, because he knows his audience is very sensitive to those words and it would equate evil with being gay. You got to hand it to Bill. He is the master of subtle manipulation!
But, what I don’t understand is why he cares at all about this ad? I know he is against gay rights, I know he is a conservative, but this ad didn’t even run in this country! Talk about overreaching, Bill! Instead of focusing on more ways to sever and divide people, why not take an opportunity to create understanding and unity? This whole idea of it being “us versus them” has got to stop. We are all in this together, whether we like it or not, and if we can’t “come as we are”, what’s the point of it all? As a species, our collective consciousness must evolve and progress in a positive, compassionate and enlightened direction. And sometimes, that is a painful process to work through, but we must work through it together, if we want our humanity to thrive. So, yes, please, come as you are. For what makes us collectively strong is our individuality!
erikdolnack
This is a classic example of a social conservative having issues with moderate conservatism. One could hardly call the McDonald’s corporation “liberal” by any stretch of the imagination, but even McDonald’s want gay business and isn’t resorting to stereotyping. The corporate execs are moderate Republicans and these are what the social conservatives and religious conservatives always confuse as a “liberal” movement.
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I’m going Fifth-Grade Schoolyard here.
Bill O’Reilly is gay.
But what really gets him frustrated is his secret realization that no gay man would ever have the bad taste to have sex with him. Sad really.
I think as the blog stated he is trying to politicize this ad campaign even though it clearly isn’t. He sounds like a Russian revolutionary proclaiming “The Private life is dead. Everything is political.” Its creepy.