US Viewers Slam 'Racist' Aussie KFC Ad

An Australian Kentucky Fried Chicken ad featuring a white cricket fan befriending a black crowd with a bucket of fried chicken has been blasted as racist in the US. The Australian fan in the ad asks "Need a tip when you're stuck in an awkward situation?" while surrounded by cheering West Indies fans. KFC says the ad was never meant for US audiences, the Adelaide Advertiser reports.

"A flustered white guy gets out of an 'awkward situation' which appears to mean being stuck in a crowd of happy black people—by ordering in fried chicken," complains Mediabistro. The ad—titled "How to Silence a Noisy Crowd"—is "a light-hearted reference to the West Indian cricket team," KFC said in a statement. "The ad was reproduced online in the US without KFC's permission, where we are told a culturally based stereotype exists, leading to the incorrect assertion of racism."
(More KFC stories.)