McDonald's Racial Ads: They can't be serious?

So these have been making the rounds on the 'net for a few weeks, but I just noticed them. McDonald’s has made a few marketing sites targeted at certain ethnicities:

365black.com targets black people and promotes “Opportunity” and has a picture of a black rapper proclaiming how he got more fans after he started working at McD’s (he has fans left?).

MeEncanta.com targets the Hispanic market and talks about Latin pride (because McD’s knows all about that) and offers scholarships.

Myinspirasian.com targets Asians and prominently features the Dollar Menu alongside origami made from dollar bills and a “shock your friends by talking like an Asian” widget.

I don’t know whether to laugh or cry. I thought these were parody sites at first, but they seemed too professionally-made… and indeed, McDonald’s links to them from their regular website. Wow. Are these blatantly racist? Are they simply acknowledging reality and trying to identify with minorities? Where’s 365white.com?

It’s also interesting to note how employment offers are displayed on the different sites. On the regular US site, it’s just a nondescript toolbar link alongside “nutrition” and “kids”. On the Black site, the entire focus is on McDonald’s as “Opportunity”*. On the Hispanic site, there’s a big red button saying “Click here for Employment Opportunities.” On the Asian site, the job offer link is a barely-visible text link hidden away in a submenu.

They’ve certainly taken a bold new move in marketing… thoughts?

*Heh, this reminds me of a huge McDonald’s sign I drove by in Eureka, CA. It said “CONGRATULATIONS HUMBOLDT CLASS OF 2009! NOW HIRING.” Wish I got a picture!

What makes you think it’s racist?

Trying to sell to a subculture or ethnicity based on a perceived common ground, even if you’ve badly missed the mark, isn’t racist- it’s targeted advertising.

Yeah, I would think “racist” would connote some sort of discrimination, and I certainly don’t feel discriminated against by the lack of a white-aimed McDonalds website.

I think the point is that the sites are rather condescending to the minorities they’re targeting and based more on stereotypes than on any real understanding of that particular ethnicity/culture. I can’t imagine them being very effective.

Racism is making assumptions or treating people differently based on the colour of their skin, and it’s not just in discrimination context. Saying that “all Asians are cheapskates” is racist and saying that “all black people have great rhythmn” is racist too even though one is intended as an insult and the other is intended as a compliment.

I don’t know if the sites are racist, but they do seem a little condescending. I think that the Asian site with the emphasis on the dollar menu potentially has a racist subtext, but if it’s targeted marketing and it’s proven to work, it’s hard to criticise.

The Hispanic one has some real strange things. Apparently there is a part about dialectal variations, which is accesible only in the Spanish version but announced in the English version like this:

Apparently “popote” (which I hadn’t encountered before, but IANALinguist) is the Mexican dialect for a drinking straw. The page includes “support the Mexican national team.” It all seems to be directed, not to Hispanics, but to Mexicans who still feel more Mexican than American. And by the way, Mexico is large enough to have more than a dialect of Spanish.

I know it won’t work very well with, say, Miami’s Hispanic population :stuck_out_tongue:

I don’t think they’re necessarily racist in the discriminatory sense, though they are certainly stereotypical in some ways (which aren’t necessarily inaccurate, either).

I have to admit, though, that racially-targeted anything typically gives me a “whoa” moment at first; I’m too used to the faux-colorblindness I normally experience.

I guess there’s more one way to approach racial diversity: One is to pretend everyone is the same regardless of skin color or culture; another is to actually acknowledge differences, and in McD’s case, embrace the differences and exploit them for profit.

Hypocritically (of me), I wouldn’t think twice about McDonald’s targeting their international sites to different groups and cultures, but doing so to different domestic groups certainly made me pause. Maybe that just shows how effectively I’ve been brainwashed into believing “You mentioned… RACE. BAD!!! SHH!!!” :frowning:

But all ad in some way “pander” some are just more obvious. AT&T has a couple of ad aimed squarely at Blacks. Of couse it’s no co-incidence that these ads feature, middle to upscale African Americans, which I have no issue with, (clearly they’re trying to capitalize off of Mr Obama) but the announcer can’t pronounce the word INTERNET. OK it’s not “Inna net” OK you can’t even pronounce the word you’re trying to sell?

The McDonalds commercial with the latina who pronounces McCaffé as “maakaafay” infuriates me.

I think you’re being racist. Well, not really, but your reading comprehension needs work. The “black rapper” is an R&B artist whose music has appeared in their commercials and who has appeared in music festivals sponsored by McDonalds.

I’m just trying to figure out if the websites are targeted at the general public or at franchisees.

I doubt that the “condescending” atmosphere the OP senses comes from McDonalds or the website. The issue is that McDonald’s main customer is poorer people. When you market to poor people, you place emphasis on bling and OMG bargain prices and so on. Essentially, they’re marketing to (who the OP would consider to be) idiots.

Once you pair that with ethnicity specific websites, it looks racist, like they’re calling blacks or Mexicans or whoever idiots. But of course that’s not the case. It just happens to be that they’re advertising to the idiot segment of those populaces.

I think condescending is exactly right, and the dollar menu thing on the Asian site is borderline offensive. There are ways to pander to different cultures without resorting to obvious racial stereotypes. There are a lot more behind different cultures than just the old tired cliches.

My guess would be that each site was developed separately, and probably each group went out and did focus groups to figure out what the top 3 topics to hit were for each ethnic group, and proceeded to brain storm how to do it.

It’s unlikely that there was a premeditated plan, nor any racial profiling that went into it beyond actually scientifically profiling them.

I’ll give McDonald’s a pass on their marketing. Being so big, they often have to rely on marketing agencies in other countries particularly for translation.

The problem is when they use a local marketing company to do ads outside of their specialty. For example, if their Mexican ad agency did the US ads.

Here, this looks like typical examples of a US company trying to target non-whites.

It’s not just McDonald’s. It’s lots of big companies. And other things too.

I’m sure you’re aware that before the election Barack Obama’s website had a separate page for every conceivable ethnic voting block – blacks, Asians, Hispanics, Jews, etc. And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. Heck, I voted for him.

No, I actually wasn’t aware of that at all. How neat. Are they still up?

Making any reference to race is, quite often, seen as racism. Sad but true.

You make absolutely no sense. If there is no discrimination, what the heck is wrong with it? And if discrimination is not required, how the heck is something that is clearly targeting a specific race not considered racist?

The only reason “all black people have great rhythm” can be considered racist is that has the corollary “all non-black people have bad rhythm.” In what world is saying good things about a group of people considered a bad thing?

When they’re based on ignorant stereotypes that are meant to emphasise the divide between different races?

Hey we can’t talk about Mc donald’s marketing with out first talking about how sexy hawt their cheese burgers are.