Naomi Campbell May Sue Cadbury For 'racist' Chocolate Ads

[Choccy 0]

Racism is racism either way. It's possible to argue that there is no link, however "the most pampered bar" explicitly suggests that there is a racial link.

 

What should it say?

"I'm the most pampered foil covered dairy product"?

It is a chocolate bar.

 

It is in no way justifiable to treat someone different because of their race...

 

Agreed. However, this is not one of those cases.

They picked an aesthetically pleasing woman, and said, "our chocolate bar is more pleasing than you".

It's unacceptable to have a black person presented in that way while saying the most pampered bar, something that can be linked as a racial reference.

 

It was completely avoidable if they hadn't used her name, but by using her name and making comparisons to her, a black person, and a chocolate bar, it can be argued to be racist. Sorry but your making out that the advert was completely ambiguous when those words are used with a direct link to her it makes a very clear statement.

[Micael Fatia 542]

If anything she should take it as a compliment that they (Cadbury) think she is 'an aesthetically pleasing woman' like Jethraw said. Unless the chocolate looks absolutely terrible of course lol.

[Jethraw 345]

It's unacceptable to have a black person presented in that way while saying the most pampered bar, something that can be linked as a racial reference.

 

It was completely avoidable if they hadn't used her name, but by using her name and making comparisons to her, a black person, and a chocolate bar, it can be argued to be racist. Sorry but your making out that the advert was completely ambiguous when those words are used with a direct link to her it makes a very clear statement.

 

Yes, it can be linked. As I've already said.

So can anything, if you actively seek to make it link.

 

There's political correctness and then there's taking it to the extreme purely to fight an arguably nonexistent cause.

Edited June 1, 2011 by Jethraw

[definedeath2 0]

Usually when describing the skin color of a black person I call them black. Not a bar. Naomi probably saw the ad and said, "F*** this. I'm still the biggest diva around and i'm about to prove it."

[Tabt 255]

^ LOL!

 

She's just doing it for the publicity.

 

Who else could they have chosen...Mariah Carey?

 

Probably should have been her tbh, its not like Naomi has been near chocolate in years.

 

Probably just resents the connection to something so calorific.

Edited June 1, 2011 by tabt

[heb0 150]

So basically because the product they're selling is brown and because they talked about a person with brown skin it's racist?

 

wat.

[Choccy 0]

There's a difference in actively seeking to make a link and one actually being there...

 

So they first say it's more of a Diva than Naomi and then they say the most pampered bar in the world, I think there's quite a big distinction in actively seeking to link it and there being a link.

 

The connection is far too implicit and the fact that cadbury refused to change the advert makes it even more ridiculous.

 

@Hebo: what's racist is that it suggests she is a chocolate bar, a common racial slur used against black people today and for a long time.

Edited June 1, 2011 by Choccy

[heb0 150]

So it's linking it to her being a pampered diva.

[Tabt 255]

There's a difference in actively seeking to make a link and one actually being there...

 

So they first say it's more of a Diva than Naomi and then they say the most pampered bar in the world, I think there's quite a big distinction in actively seeking to link it and there being a link.

 

 

Thats the point, they are linking that they are both pampered and divas, not that they are both brown.

 

Its not racism to advertise products that are the same colour as you. Or Curry's would have real problems selling fridges.

[Jethraw 345]

 

 

 

 

 

Brb suing Nestle.

 

There's a difference in actively seeking to make a link and one actually being there...

If you can find it, it's obviously there to begin with.

The number of posters on this thread alone that have stated they didn't notice it signifies that upon looking at the advert it doesn't reach out and slap you in the face.

 

The fact that linking a coloured person to a brown product is classed as racism only goes to highlight how pathetically "political correctness" has been dragged out to become.

Edited June 1, 2011 by Jethraw

[Micael Fatia 542]

There's a difference in actively seeking to make a link and one actually being there...

 

So they first say it's more of a Diva than Naomi and then they say the most pampered bar in the world, I think there's quite a big distinction in actively seeking to link it and there being a link.

I can't think of any other model with a bigger 'diva attitude' than Naomi and I believe that's the reason why they picked her to promote this chocolate not because of her skin color.

Would there be any problem if they had picked a white model to promote a white chocolate bar? lol :D

Edited June 1, 2011 by Micael Fatia

[heb0 150]

Also, connecting it to Obama's visit to Europe was so much of a stretch that I think I pulled a muscle mid-sentence.

Edited June 1, 2011 by heb0

[Choccy 0]

It's fine to call the chocolate bar the most pampered diva, that's comparing a chocolate bar to a type of person. It's not fine to call Naomi campbell a less pampered bar, that's comparing a black woman to a chocolate bar. Let's not forget chocolate bar was a violent racist word used against many black people, especially in the past, it has very sensitive connotations.

 

It may seem trivial, but political correctness SHOULD be there to protect people from being demeaned by their race. They can make fun of Naomi Campbell for any thing she's done, that's fine, however it should never relate to her race. Cadbury were aware of this and they did not change it, that is what gives her further right to sue.

 

It's a sensitive word, used poorly - it can be implicitly interpreted as racist and Cadbury was aware of this and did not change it, this to me is unacceptable.

Edited June 1, 2011 by Choccy

[MFI 43]

See, when Rolf did this:

 

 

Cracker is a racist term for white people, but I'm not offended either .. Maybe Rolf should be offended for having the racist term displayed under him, like a title. SUE ROLF, SUE!

[Jethraw 345]

Let's not forget chocolate bar was a violent racist word used against many black people, especially in the past, it has very sensitive connotations.

 

The fact that the product is known as a "chocolate bar" suggests itself that society has progressed past the point where that is blunt racism.

 

It's pathetic people dragging something so abstract and playing the racism card that are the problem with today's society. As a result you get such severe and uptight socially accepted behaviour that advertising your product gets you sued for racism.

 

*Enter this topic*

[Tabt 255]

It's fine to call the chocolate bar the most pampered diva, that's comparing a chocolate bar to a type of person. It's not fine to call Naomi campbell a less pampered bar, that's comparing a black woman to a chocolate bar.

So Naomi Campbell isn't a type of person?

 

See, when Rolf did this:

 

 

Cracker is a racist term for white people, but I'm not offended either .. Maybe Rolf should be offended for having the racist term displayed under him, like a title. SUE ROLF, SUE!

Pmsl!

[Doddsy 20]

It's fine to call the chocolate bar the most pampered diva, that's comparing a chocolate bar to a type of person. It's not fine to call Naomi campbell a less pampered bar, that's comparing a black woman to a chocolate bar. Let's not forget chocolate bar was a violent racist word used against many black people, especially in the past, it has very sensitive connotations.

 

It may seem trivial, but political correctness SHOULD be there to protect people from being demeaned by their race. They can make fun of Naomi Campbell for any thing she's done, that's fine, however it should never relate to her race. Cadbury were aware of this and they did not change it, that is what gives her further right to sue.

 

It's a sensitive word, used poorly - it can be implicitly interpreted as racist and Cadbury was aware of this and did not change it, this to me is unacceptable.

If someone said that a person who was coloured was the 'most pampered bar in town' I would never draw a connection that it was a racial slur until someone pointed it out.

 

I think that the wording makes perfect sense. The opening line is a joke about Naomi being a stupid spoilt Diva. That's the opening line, kind of the pull in advertising. Then they actually advertise the product by saying it is the most pampered bar around, insinuating that it is well made/exclusive/special. The opening line is a joke hook, the second explains the product.

 

I've seen this on the web and never noticed any connection until people mentioned it here, and still find it a stretch :D

[definedeath2 0]

So it's linking it to her being a pampered diva.

 

Which she basically proved is true by overreacting to the ad.

[Conspicuous 196]

just wondering, did cadbury really need to take this route in in terms of advertising?

[Scrum 8]

Who said that this 'Naomi' was Naomi Campbell?

 

It's just a random Naomi who's a bit of a diva

 

PEOPLE THESE DAYS

[Silavor 29]

just wondering, did cadbury really need to take this route in in terms of advertising?

Just think of how much word-of-mouth they're already generating from all this chaos. At the end of the day, no one's going to remember some obscure remark someone took as racist, they're just going to remember Cadbury. Yum.

[Emanick 1]

There's a difference in actively seeking to make a link and one actually being there...

 

So they first say it's more of a Diva than Naomi and then they say the most pampered bar in the world, I think there's quite a big distinction in actively seeking to link it and there being a link.

 

The connection is far too implicit and the fact that cadbury refused to change the advert makes it even more ridiculous.

 

@Hebo: what's racist is that it suggests she is a chocolate bar, a common racial slur used against black people today and for a long time.

Judging from the fact that you're the only person in this topic who, after reading the story, thought that Cadbury was calling Campbell a chocolate bar in a racial way, I would hazard a guess that the wording is neither obvious nor intentional. Are chocolate companies not allowed to mention black people in their advertisements because doing so is inherently racist?

 

Her race wasn't mentioned. Campbell was compared to a chocolate bar; her race wasn't mentioned. If anything, this is objectifying women, and I find that argument, too, quite unconvincing.

 

Comparing famous people to food products is something that is common in advertising, Choccy. The resulting advertisements are rarely racist. Surely you know this. Would you, then, be against any chocolate companies mentioning black people in their ads because black people would be horrifyingly offended (unless, of course, white chocolate was being sold)? If so, that's taking a pretty dim view of the ability of a black man, woman or child to get through daily life without being constantly offended, and if I was black, I'd be very pleased not to fit that view of yours.

[O hai im KAMIL 539]

Who said that this 'Naomi' was Naomi Campbell?

 

It's just a random Naomi who's a bit of a diva

 

PEOPLE THESE DAYS

 

Actually you're right. It only says Naomi. And in the story it says: "The 39 year-old supermodel is furious and offended that the chocolate company used her name in an ad for their Dairy Milk Bliss bar."

 

What so she suddenly owns the name Naomi? What a snob.

[Goggie 136]

I think we're forgetting this is also the woman who did time for throwing a telephone at someone who worked for her. Hmm.

[Choccy 0]

Perhaps I'm the only one who sees this, but I really don't like the wording that implies the first statement about Naomi is related to the second statement about being pampered bars.. If it wasn't intentional then they could have changed the advert before printing, but the wording is too suggestive for my liking... Anyway this may be because I've seen an attack on black people using the world "chocolate bar" when I was younger so to me it seems kind of unthoughtful to allow for a connection, even if it's only loosely related. However, I'm not trying to convince anyone, I'm simply saying that the advert can be interpreted as racist and I think she has every right to sue if she feels she's being demeaned due to her race.

Edited June 2, 2011 by Choccy