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April 15, 2006
Not lovin' it: McD convenes anti-Linklater "council of war"
The Independent's Martin Hickman reports on the McDonald's corporations plans to resist Richard Linklater's upcoming movie, Fast Food Nation, which Hickman asserts "is looming as a potent threat to the burger chain's fragile reputation.... Although the plot is closely guarded, it tells the story of a group of young fast-food workers, in a small Colorado town with a meat-packing plant, who uncover some unsavoury truths about the burger business... Mr Schlosser's book discusses how McDonald's targets young children, the treatment of its "McJob" employees, the mass breeding and slaughter of its livestock, the relationship between burgers and obesity, and the preponderance of additives[, claiming] there are 40 chemicals in a strawberry shake... Reports from the US suggest that McDonald's has been rattled by the risk to its reputation. The corporation was stunned by the success of Super Size Me, so [t]his time, McDonald's plans to fight back. A "council of war" has been convened inside the corporation's global HQ, according to... Advertising Age. "They're worried about a backlash," one insider was quoted as saying. "When the consumer sees the movie, they will react. It would only need to take consumers to cut back one or two visits to affect the bottom line." ... "The McDonald's family will vigorously communicate the facts about McDonald's, our people and our values," a US spokesman said."
Posted by pride at April 15, 2006 02:16 PM
Comments
McDonald's has only to close their eyes and ignore the negative press for the two weeks surrounding Fast Food Nation's release date, after which the American press and public will revert to their normal day-to-day routines of eating via drive-thrus and hypothesizing Tom Cruise's sanity. Not only that, but America's patented short-term outrage really builds up an appetite, so McDonald's might actually notice an upward spike in sales post-protest. Nothing creates a craving for fries like carrying a picket sign through that continuous cloud of french fry scented air outside the Mickey D's entrance.
Posted by: Ju-osh ![[TypeKey Profile Page]](http://www.mcnblogs.com/mcindie/nav-commenters.gif)
at April 17, 2006 07:40 AM
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