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| Dunkin' Donuts yanks Rachael Ray ad |
| 2008-05-28 |
| Does Dunkin' Donuts really think its customers could mistake Rachael Ray for a terrorist sympathizer? The Canton-based company has abruptly canceled an ad in which the domestic diva wears a scarf that looks like a keffiyeh, a traditional headdress worn by Arab men. Some observers, including ultra-conservative Fox News commentator Michelle Malkin, were so incensed by the ad that there was even talk of a Dunkin' Donuts boycott. "The keffiyeh, for the clueless, is the traditional scarf of Arab men that has come to symbolize murderous Palestinian jihad," Malkin yowls in her syndicated column. "Popularized by Yasser Arafat and a regular adornment of Muslim terrorists appearing in beheading and hostage-taking videos, the apparel has been mainstreamed by both ignorant and not-so-ignorant fashion designers, celebrities, and left-wing icons." The company at first pooh-poohed the complaints, claiming the black-and-white wrap was not a keffiyeh. But the right-wing drumbeat on the blogosphere continued and by yesterday, Dunkin' Donuts decided it'd be easier just to yank the ad. Said the suits in a statement: "In a recent online ad, Rachael Ray is wearing a black-and-white silk scarf with a paisley design. It was selected by her stylist for the advertising shoot. Absolutely no symbolism was intended. However, given the possibility of misperception, we are no longer using the commercial." (In case you're wondering, the stylist who selected the offending scarf was not Gretta Enterprises boss Gretchen Monahan, who appears on Ray's TV show as a style consultant.) For her part, Malkin was pleased with Dunkin's response: "It's refreshing to see an American company show sensitivity to the concerns of Americans opposed to Islamic jihad and its apologists." Although LGF was probably the biggest drum in the "right-wing drumbeat" mentioned, my brother's blog had a small role too. It attracted the attention of both Dunkin' Donuts and lefties incensed by the controversy. You can see the development in the comments section in this post. My brother says that they got more than 5000 hits over the weekend, not bad for a blog with a primary focus on Arizona politics. |
| Posted by:ryuge |
| #23 If someone wears a Scottish tartan, even as a Turbin, it says something. Miswearing the scarf because it's fashionable is still wearing the Keffiyeh. It sends a message of support of the Palestinaines. That is how those scarfs as marketed, as freedom scarfs. If Rachel Ray didn't know that someone at Duncan Donuts damn well should have. |
| Posted by: rjschwarz 2008-05-28 23:33 |
| #22 Jeeeezus Kerist on a shingle guys!!! "The only thing that is of any concern is the mainstreaming of the keffiyeh, " IT'S NOT A KEFFIYEH!!!!!!! IT'S A BLACK AND WHITE PRINT SCARF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Paranoia doesn't become you guys you're not like the loony tunes from the left. I know we get beat up all the time but let's not turn into them 'kay? |
| Posted by: AlanC 2008-05-28 20:43 |
| #21 Iff its the same Rachel ad depicted on FOX + CNBC, I see little or nothing degrading or kowtowing to Muslim/Islamic Americans about it, as per supporting terror. In addition, many Muslim/Islamic Americans, practicing or former, are business people whom own franchises like DUNKIN DONUTS, ETC. or own investment shares in same - THEY'RE ENTITLED TO "NATIONAL/ INTERNATIONAL" CULTURAL-ETHNIC MARKETING NEPOTISM NOW AND THEN JUST LIKE ANYBODY ELSE, NOT JUST LOCAL. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2008-05-28 19:03 |
| #20 TW, you ladies in Cincy are known for your style. And I wholly agree on the Michelle Malkin comments. She is not much more than a verbal bomb thrower. Doesn't add much toward the resolution of any issue in my experience. |
| Posted by: remoteman 2008-05-28 18:33 |
| #19 Oh, no -- in my part of the world we're as likely to tie our scarves to purse handles or around our waists as draped ever so casually around our necks. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-05-28 18:23 |
| #18 No stupid loudmouthed louts here. Nope we got us da SMART loudmouthed louts at the Burg. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2008-05-28 18:12 |
| #17 huh? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2008-05-28 17:14 |
| #16 That's why I prefer the burg. No stupid loudmouthed louts here. |
| Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2008-05-28 17:12 |
| #15 Sometime Malkin is just a stupid loudmouthed lout. Agreed. |
| Posted by: lotp 2008-05-28 16:53 |
| #14 I would agree that this is not an important issue by any means, but I don't think that the objection was to Rachael Ray or her personal political views - despite the first sentence of the article. The only thing that is of any concern is the mainstreaming of the keffiyeh, in the same way that some object to the mainstreaming of, say, the Che Guevara t-shirt (which to me seems a somewhat better analogy than that of objecting to the color red). But I still find the comments section of the Exurban League post amusing, sort of flame wars interspersed with official communiques from Dunkin' Donuts and droll sidebar controversies about whether the print was paisley and the meaning of "pashmina". Of course, being amused by such things is one of the many reasons that I'm such a big Rantburg fan. |
| Posted by: ryuge 2008-05-28 16:51 |
| #13 Pappy, the fashion for ALL scarves is to wear them around the neck, it's kinda like the defining characteristic of the fashion. Gee, thanks for the tip, dearie. In the area where I live, our resident moonbats/rock-climbers/wannabe-artists/raconteurs wear the keffiyah around their necks. Keffiyahs are often worn bandana like but they also are worn on the head No shit? Three tours in the Middle East, and I never realized that. Look - When I saw a still-clip of the commercial, it did look like a keffiyah. Dunkin Donuts' explanation makes sense, and I'll still drink their coffee in any case. Something about it reminds me of 'home'. And you're right -it's indeed an incredibly stupid thing to get worked up over. But a little cynical part of me wonders if it was intended to echo that fashion style. Wouldn't be the first time. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2008-05-28 16:34 |
| #12 A pretty one, though. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2008-05-28 16:01 |
| #11 Malkin ia an asshole and does tend to fly far off the handle on trivial stuff, and remain dead silent on other things. She also has a hatred of some people that she allows to overwhelm her reason. Fred Thompson is one of those people by the way, so its not always ideological. Sometime Malkin is just a stupid loudmouthed lout. |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2008-05-28 15:51 |
| #10 I believe in keeping my powder dry... which means several things to me... 1) never flaunt your power especially around enemies that you may need to surprise violently someday...soon. 2) Don't get tied up in petty tactical squabbles where you may wind up frittering away Strategic Power. 3) Who cares about Rachel Ray visa vi the WOT? 4) Who cares about some damn scarf that she may wear. I'm surprised that Michelle Malkin picked this fight.. Last but not Least to Hell with Carol Beggy and Mark Shanahan, they are Nothing but two more Liberal Morons riding Arafish Camels for the Boston Globe.. |
| Posted by: RD 2008-05-28 14:52 |
| #9 Pappy, the fashion for ALL scarves is to wear them around the neck, it's kinda like the defining characteristic of the fashion. Keffiyah's are often worn bandana like but they also are worn on the head (see Uncle Yasser). This is as stupid as people that won't countenance the color Red cause it represents Commies. The whole thing is just plain stupid. As far as her politics go I've only seen here on her cooking and food shows where politics have never ever been relevant. Stupid, stupid, stupid. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2008-05-28 14:12 |
| #8 The pattern is totally different than Yasser's hounds tooth check and it's worn around the neck not the head and there is no towel bar holding it on. From the numerous examples I've seen here (both male and female), the fashion is to wear it around the neck. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2008-05-28 13:47 |
| #7 my brother's blog had a small role too He's 'Exurban League'? Cool. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2008-05-28 13:42 |
| #6 Concur w/AlanC - my wife watches Rachel Ray, from what I've seen of her she's pretty apolitical. This makes our side of the house look stupid. Reminds me of some uninformed comments Newt Gingrich made about pop culture about 10 yrs ago. (Unless there's some super plot to get more muslims to buy the morning dunkin' java and an apple fritter afoot...) |
| Posted by: Broadhead6 2008-05-28 13:13 |
| #5 I have to agree with AlanC here. Anybody who has ever watched Rachel Ray will understand immediately how ridiculous this is. Gimme a frickin' break. |
| Posted by: Abu Uluque 2008-05-28 12:04 |
| #4 Sorry, but Michelle is VERY wrong here. I have watched Rachel Ray's shows for years and this is perfectly consistent with her fashion choices. Is the Right Wing (of which I consider myself a member) so abusurd that they complain anytime someone wears a scarf that happens to be black and white? This is ridiculous. The pattern is totally different than Yasser's hounds tooth check and it's worn around the neck not the head and there is no towel bar holding it on. Good grief people take a deep breath and get a grip. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2008-05-28 11:20 |
| #3 it's the Boston Globe (Boston.com), loser subsidiary of the loser NY Times. Whadya expect? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2008-05-28 09:55 |
| #2 "yowls"? No bias or ad hominem slurs there, eh? |
| Posted by: OldSpook 2008-05-28 09:41 |
| #1 Good. Push back. Push back harder. |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2008-05-28 09:14 |