KFC Australia pulls out ‘racist’ ad after online row

It is strange how the most controversial ads seem to pop up in the Australian media. The latest is a TV spot by the Australian arm of fast food chain Kentucky Fried Chicken. KFC Australia has had to apologise and pull out the ad, which depicts a white Australian cricket fan calming down a rowdy bunch of West Indies fans by handing around a bucket of KFC's chicken.

The commercial was made for the Australian television market, but was seen in America after it was posted on YouTube. Most of the criticism of the ad seems to have come from the racially-sensitive US rather than from Australia.

In the wake of the debate that raged in American media over whether it was racist, KFC's Australian head office on Thursday said the advertisement has been pulled from the air in Australia.

"We have been made aware that a KFC commercial being shown on Australian television has apparently caused offence, particularly in the United States, after a copy of the commercial was reproduced online without KFC's permission," a company statement said.

"While we believe this light-hearted commercial has been well understood by Australian cricket fans, to avoid the possibility of any further offence being caused by the advertisement either here or online overseas, KFC will cease running the commercial immediately.''

KFC Australia spokesman Zac Rich said earlier that the company had received only two complaints about the advertisement from people in Australia, and they were "along the same lines as in America".