McDonald's said late last week that it had asked BET to remove ads from a part of the network's Web site that featured women in seductive poses, clad in bikinis and lingerie. The complaint appears to have played a key role in BET opting to remove the "B-Girls" section from BET.com--a move that took place around Jan. 16.
The acknowledgment by McDonald's that it protested the ads contrasts sharply with a statement given by BET last Monday commenting on why it pulled down "B-Girls." The network said it had long planned to remove the section and the action was "unrelated" to "any advertiser feedback of which there was none."
McDonald's appears to have become aware that its banner ads were running on "B-Girls" after Gina McCauley--who runs a blog that seeks to combat negative images of African-American women--launched a campaign targeting advertisers on Jan. 10. It's not clear whether any other "B-Girls" advertisers such as General Mills or the U.S. Army also complained. Calls seeking comment were not immediately returned.
Read more: MediaPost
Comments