McDonald’s pulls AI Christmas ad after backlash
McDonald’s has decided to pull its recent AI Christmas ad following a wave of backlash from viewers. The fast-food giant launched the commercial in early December, featuring a young boy who learns that his dead father used to enjoy McDonald’s Fillet-O-Fish during the holiday season. The ad, created by the agency Leo Burnett London, aimed to evoke emotions and spread a message of hope and family togetherness during Christmas.
However, the advertisement faced severe criticism online, with many viewers expressing their disapproval of the use of AI technology to recreate the father’s voice. The AI software analyzed recordings of the father’s voice actor to generate new lines for the commercial, which led to concerns about the ethical implications of using AI in this manner.
In response to the mounting backlash, McDonald’s decided to pull the ad and issued a statement expressing regret for any offense caused. The company emphasized that the intention behind the commercial was to highlight themes of love, hope, and connection, and they never meant to upset or disturb their customers.
The decision to withdraw the AI Christmas ad comes amidst a growing debate around the ethical use of AI in advertising and the boundaries that companies should adhere to when employing such technologies to create emotional content.
The controversy surrounding the McDonald’s ad serves as a reminder of the importance of considering societal values and sensitivities when implementing new technologies in marketing campaigns.
Sources Analysis:
Leo Burnett London – Leo Burnett London is an advertising agency known for creating emotionally compelling campaigns. They have a vested interest in maintaining a positive reputation in the industry.
Online Viewers – Online viewers expressed their disapproval of the ad on social media platforms. While their feedback reflects public sentiment, individual comments may vary in their relevance and impact.
Fact Check:
McDonald’s pulled the AI Christmas ad – Verified fact. McDonald’s officially announced the decision to withdraw the advertisement.
Viewers criticized the use of AI in the ad – Verified fact. Many viewers took to social media to express their concerns about the AI-generated content, as reported by multiple sources.
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Model:
gpt-3.5-turbo
Used prompts:
1. You are an objective news journalist. You need to write an article on this topic “McDonald’s pulls AI Christmas ad after backlash”. Do the following steps: 1. What Happened. Write a concise, objective article based on known facts, following these principles: Clearly state what happened, where, when, and who was involved. Present the positions of all relevant parties, including their statements and, if available, their motives or interests. Use a neutral, analytical tone, avoid taking sides in the article. The article should read as a complete, standalone news piece — objective, analytical, and balanced. Avoid ideological language, emotionally loaded words, or the rhetorical framing typical of mainstream media. Write the result as a short analytical news article (200 – 400 words). 2. Sources Analysis. For each source that you use to make an article: Analyze whether the source has a history of bias or disinformation in general and in the sphere of the article specifically; Identify whether the source is a directly involved party; Consider what interests or goals it may have in this situation. Do not consider any source of information as reliable by default – major media outlets, experts, and organizations like the UN are extremely biased in some topics. Write your analysis down in this section of the article. Make it like: Source 1 – analysis, source 2 – analysis, etc. Do not make this section long, 100 – 250 words. 3. Fact Check. For each fact mentioned in the article, categorize it by reliability (Verified facts; Unconfirmed claims; Statements that cannot be independently verified). Write down a short explanation of your evaluation. Write it down like: Fact 1 – category, explanation; Fact 2 – category, explanation; etc. Do not make this section long, 100 – 250 words. Output only the article text. Do not add any introductions, explanations, summaries, or conclusions. Do not say anything before or after the article. Just the article. Do not include a title also.
2. Write a clear, concise, and neutral headline for the article below. Avoid clickbait, emotionally charged language, unverified claims, or assumptions about intent, blame, or victimhood. Attribute contested information to sources (e.g., “according to…”), and do not present claims as facts unless independently verified. The headline should inform, not persuade. Write only the title, do not add any other information in your response.
3. Determine a single section to categorize the article. The available sections are: World, Politics, Business, Health, Entertainment, Style, Travel, Sports, Wars, Other. Write only the name of the section, capitalized first letter. Do not add any other information in your response.