KFC might be “finger licking good” but its new campaign was all kinds of bad, according to some people on the internet.
The food franchise found itself on the wrong side of social media and got dragged for its latest advertising campaign promoting its signature chicken.
On Aug. 24, KFC Canada Marketing Director Azim Akhtar posted images of billboards with the new campaign on X, saying “Latest campaign, I couldn’t be more proud!”
At first glance, the images show people enjoying delicious fried chicken and eating it by hand.
The slogan “Sorry utensils, it’s finger lickin’ good,” is a nod to the fact that no one should ever use cutlery when digging into fried chicken, it’s just one of those unspoken rules.
However, people took a second glance at the imagery and noticed that the only people featured in the campaign were Black people.
The internet was quick to point out how “culturally insensitive” this was as Black people have historically been mocked and stereotyped with various foods.
Many said that the marketing effort was creative and would have gone unscathed had they incorporated other ethnicities.
“I think this campaign is brilliant. Visually, it’s strong as hell. However, and this is a big however, this lacked cultural sensitivity. Casting missed the mark,” one X user said.
The comment section was also filled with users saying fried chicken is a cultural dish beloved globally and not synonymous with Black people.
Not to mention the entire KFC franchise was created by Colonel Harland Sanders, a white man who loved fried chicken and sold it on the side of the road in Kentucky, USA during the Great Depression, eventually bringing it to Canada in 1953.
In response to the criticism, Akhtar apologized for not being more “thoughtful” when sharing select photos from the campaign, and he shared the full commercial.
“My earlier post didn’t capture the full diversity of our latest campaign and I personally apologize for not being more thoughtful in my excitement to share the campaign and only sharing certain photos. Here is the 60-second spot that is more representative of Canada’s diversity and our creative,” he said.
By signing up, I agree to receive emails from Now Toronto and to the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.
