I wrote last week that Nationwide Insurance would feature no-talent baby-maker Kevin Federline in a Super Bowl commercial. The AP provides some details: [The] 30-second spot shows Federline, who is estranged from pop princess Britney Spears, performing in a glitzy music video. However, the punch line is that he's daydreaming - while cooking french fries at a fast-food joint.
Seems harmless enough, but the National Restaurant Association vehemently disagrees. "The ad amounts to a 'strong and direct insult to the 12.8 million Americans who work in the restaurant industry,'" National Restaurant Association President and Chief Executive Steven Anderson wrote in a letter to Nationwide CEO Jerry Jurgensen.
Anderson added that the commercial "would give the impression that working in a restaurant is demeaning and unpleasant."
Whatever your thoughts on working in a restaurant, there's no doubt that working in a restaurant with K-Fed would be demeaning and unpleasant. I mean, what does it say about you, the restaurant employee, when you're no better than some dude who could only manage to sell 6,500 copies of his debut rap album, "Playing with Fire" in it's first week of release. It would make you suicidal, I'd imagine.
Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Being a thirty-something working in a fast food restaurant would be demeaning and unpleasant. It doesn't take a commercial of K-fed pretending to do so to make me feel that way.
People need to lighten up on this. I can relate to it cause I work in retail (and have worked in fast food) while working on music on the side. I don't find it demeaning one bit cause the vast majority of emcees/beatmakers/musicians work these jobs (anyone recall a cat named EMINEM who worked in fast food?. We all have those daydreams. Funny how because its K-Fed the world are in an uproar. Folks always looking for the negative in something instead of just taking it for what it is, a COMMERCIAL. We need to take things lightly and laugh at ourselves sometimes.
Oh man, that's great. I'm sure the ceo of the national restaurant association would give up his job any day to work in fast food. At least- until this commercial came out- which was the first time ever that a negative sentiment was associated with working in fast food. Seriously...who would rather be rich than serve burgers and fries?!
I'm sorry but...if you're over 20 and your job takes place inside of a mcdonalds...you took a wrong turn somewhere.
Oh man, that's great. I'm sure the ceo of the national restaurant association would give up his job any day to work in fast food. At least- until this commercial came out- which was the first time ever that a negative sentiment was associated with working in fast food. Seriously...who would rather be rich than serve burgers and fries?!
I'm sorry but...if you're over 20 and your job takes place inside of a mcdonalds...you took a wrong turn somewhere.
Obviously this shows how any stubborn idiot can be president of the National Restaurant Association. Steven C. Anderson has completely missed the point and in doing so has shown his incompetence. The commercial has nothing to do with a fry-cook daydreaming of rap stardom so it is not slamming anybody but K-Fed Himself. The commercial is about a financial product (an Annuity) that guarantees an income for life. It shows how K-Fed was once a rap star (I guess) and since he divorced Brittany and has spent all of his money he knows has to work as a fry-cook. Basically all this commercial states is that K-Fed should have put his money in a lifetime guaranteed annuity so that he would not run out of money for the rest of his life. Steven C Anderson you might one to pick a finance book or least have some common knowledge before embarrassing yourself in public again.
Why the uproar--fast food may be a starter job for many but many people live well and support families on these jobs. I myself am buying a house-supproting my two kids and two grandkids and put a daughter in law through college on a fast food salary so it's not all bad. Now let's talk about demeaning and offensive about peoples narrow mindedness about the quick serv industry.
"Now let's talk about demeaning and offensive about peoples narrow mindedness about the quick serv industry."
what? did you read that sentence before you wrote it? Maybe that's why you're in fast food... I'm sorry, but you did NOT do all those things all on a fast food paycheck. Especially if you were a fry cook...maybe if you were in management. But i'm sure you either have other sources of income yourself, have others around you who contributed money to raising those kids/grandkids (like the grandkids parents?..), and/or grants/scholarships for the daughter in college. Buying a house, paying for college, and supporting a family, ONLY on the "salary" of a server in fast food?! (if you're a fry cook, you're getting paid hourly, you're not salaried...) That's impossible and you know it. Sorry if it offends you but it's just a fact.
Regardless, the point is that working as a teller/cook in fast food is a job that pretty much anyone over age 16 can get. Nobody aspires to do it...nobody. So how on earth is it offensive to fast food employees that someone with that job would daydream about having a better job?! Would it be more accurate to have him serving fries thinking "Yes!! I made it! My dream job. I hope I get to do this for the rest of my life."? If you could do something that payed more, gave better benefits, and had better long term financial security, i'm sure you would.
"I mean, what does it say about you, the restaurant employee, when you're no better than some dude who could only manage to sell 6,500 copies of his debut rap album, "Playing with Fire" in it's first week of release."
What the hell kind of comment is that, Ryan Whoeveryouthinkyouare???? Is that how you judge your self-worth...who you work with? If you worked with 50 high school drop-outs and made $20K a year and I worked with 50 Phd's and made $200K would you think I was better than you? I don't think so. There sre some of us out there (unfortunately not enough in our "get rich" culture)) that do not base their self-worth on money and perceived success. Some of us set our own standards, no matter how low they may seem to others, and are filled up and content with other facets of life besides money and status. Get over yourself...you are no "better" than anyone because of your job or your income (which probably isn't that much anyway)
As for the commercial....OMG! People need to relax. I'm now waiting for the Auto-Mechanics Association of America to write a letter complaining that the Snickers commercial offended them by insinuating that all auto-mechanics are homophobic. Geez.