As a non-Thai, I feel offended by being excluded from the encouragement.
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Apple Pulls Latest Ad After Criticism Over Depiction of Thailand
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Maybe I missed it, but did DreamWorks ever apologize to Bratislava residents? 'Cause, man, was that depiction off!
If we have learned anything over the past decade the answer to that question is a quick and decisive no.
Unfortunately, it appears that much of the world is run by people to whom peace and tranquility are so foreign that they have to create chaos wherever they can just to feel better.
I believe there’s no lifers online who all they do is scroll scroll scroll
> Apple worked with Thailand-based film production studio Indochina Productions on the video, and it was shot entirely in Thailand.
I haven’t watched it, but this sounds an awful lot like a personal problem.
I haven’t watched it, but this sounds an awful lot like a personal problem.
I mean, a lot of Thailand does look like that though? I guess these countries only want you to show their luxury hotels and neighborhoods of the super-rich. Not exactly an accurate picture of what the country is like.
I love how sensitive everyone is. Great going humans. I miss the 90s.
I apologize to Thailand too for the all the times as a kid when I’d ask my friends “what is the capital of Thailand?”
And then body tag them…
And then body tag them…
While the commercial is pure american excess cringe, I see no lies or malice in the way Thailand is portrayed. Agree it's a personal issue.
Okay now Apple even cancels their Ads.
Cancel culture going strong!
Cancel culture going strong!
Am I the only one here who thinks the Ad isn't just in bad taste - it's also just... bad?
Like, the "apple guy" is an insufferable grump. His family sucks too. It's not a charming premise, leaving aside the mexico-filter and odd culture vibes
Like, the "apple guy" is an insufferable grump. His family sucks too. It's not a charming premise, leaving aside the mexico-filter and odd culture vibes
I’m not Thai and I find the ad offensive. I’ve been to Bangkok, Rayon, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Songkhla, Hat Yai, Pattaya and countless other cities large and small and I assure you that ad does a disservice to Thai society and culture.
Apple today issued an apology to Thailand for the way the country was portrayed in a July "The Underdogs" short film, and the video has also been removed from Apple's YouTube channel. In the ad that was released on July 18, the underdogs design team traveled to Bangkok and Rayong, Thailand for a project and were depicted traveling in a tuk-tuk and staying in a rundown hotel.
Thai residents found the depiction of Thailand offensive, and took to social media to criticize Apple for portraying the country with outdated stereotypes. The video made Thailand look "low-tech and underdeveloped" due to the faded, sepia tone and focus on dilapidated architecture, according to the Bangkok Post.
Thai House of Representatives Committee on Tourism spokesperson Sattra Sripan called for a boycott on Apple over the video. "Thai people are deeply unhappy with the advertisement," he said. "I encourage Thai people to stop using Apple products and change to other brands." He said that the tourism committee planned to invite Apple representatives and state agencies to discuss the ad.
Apple in a statement to Bangkok Post this morning said that it was sorry that Thailand was inaccurately portrayed, and confirmed that the ad had been taken down.
Apple worked with Thailand-based film production studio Indochina Productions on the video, and it was shot entirely in Thailand. Since 2019, Apple has released several videos that star the underdogs as part of an "Apple at Work" ad campaign.
This is the second ad that Apple has pulled this year. When the M4 iPad Pro models came out in May, Apple showed a video of a hydraulic press crushing an array of creative tools, which was not well received by creatives. Apple pulled the video, apologized, and said that it had "missed the mark" with the ad.
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Article Link: Apple Pulls Latest Ad After Criticism Over Depiction of Thailand
My strongest impression of Bangkok is cutting-edge infrastructure and design in harmony with history and culture. My strongest impressions of smaller cities is modern conveniences in harmony with history and culture. In both large and small cities my experience with Thai people is one of humble, friendly sophistication and industriousness.
That ad is a juvenile and insulting caricature of Thailand that should not have left the studio. Shame on Indochina Productions and shame on Apple for this stupid mistake.
I miss the 90s’ Apple too.
Oh, wait.
Seeing how many of y’all here are offended that some people didn’t like an ad, it would appear not.
One night in Bangkok makes a hard man humble.
Same can be said of the fragile culture we also created. People now get offended so easily.
Well… It’s a bad ad too. As someone who lived in a third world country I wouldn’t say it’s exactly offensive but it’s … I guess just not funny as it intended to be. They tried to be humorous but never really get there as it’s been with their video ads lately. I still remember the “Photos Every Day” ad from the iPhone 5 era as their golden age. It’s touching and resonates with the human things we all have in us and things have fallen flat/been hit or miss since then.
Imagine how the residents of Slovakia felt when they saw the Hostel movies! Their tourist board must have gone ape.
Righteous, manufactured outrage has become pathological.
But then again, Thailand is a place where saying "I don't like the King" can get you executed or very close to it.
And with this, cancel culture grows more emboldened and entitled. Absolutely hilarious to me how we cowtow to these people. As an example, It’s low key hilarious that in every home burglar security system the depicted “burglars” must be White.
What happened to "Your feelings got hurt? Sorry, but you need to get over it."
Get over yourselves. Get a hobby. Do something useful instead of whining on the web.