Image Credit: Screen Grab of Christmas ad by M&S.
The recent Christmas campaign launched by the biggest British retail brand featuring burning paper hats with the same color as the Palestine flag has earned widespread criticism, with individuals calling to boycott the brand.
The British retail giant, Marks & Spencer, has found itself at the center of controversy after the launch of the Christmas campaign. The campaign that was titled Love Thismas and Not Thatmas, with a visual of a burning Palestinian flag, received backlash from social media users. This campaign has sparked widespread outrage, with many individuals calling to boycott the retailer using hashtags like #boycottmarksandspencer.
The controversy started with the Instagram post on the company’s feed; however, the post was deleted later. The campaign post by Marks and Spencer encouraged people to focus and buy things they admire rather than trivial things like hats; however, the colors depicted on the hats were the same as those of the Palestinian flag. Critics pointed out that the burning of these hats can be an indication of Marks and Spencer’s support for Israel.
In response to criticism, the company first disabled the ability to comment on Instagram posts and ultimately deleted the post, further making the situation suspicious.
As critics kept arguing that the paper hats and Palestinian flag were not a coincidence but intentional, the brand clarified that the image was recorded back in August featuring Christmas party hats in different colors. It further stated that the post was removed based on consumer feedback.
Social media users have been sharing screenshots of the deleted posts on Instagram and TikTok, expressing their huge disappointment.
While the brand had already provided clarification and taken immediate steps to address the controversy, the situation serves as a reminder of cultural sensitivity and the impact of visual elements in campaigns, especially during the devastating war times.
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This post was last modified on November 3, 2023 7:13 pm
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Advertantaly or inadvertantly, buinessess should be careful in observing business ethics and moral while advertising for proudcts. Very often such advertising becomes sensitive for certain group of people in a society. Any advertisment of business should not be, insultive, offensive, outrageous, blasphemous, blatant, discriminative,detrimental or should cause 'hatred' to mankind. Observing of Margeting 'ethics' is very important. It only establishes negative opinion for a business enterprise and this reflect by way of reduce sell or in the bottom line.