I have been following the story of the Burger King commercial – “I like Square Butts” with interest. When I first saw the commercial I personally thought it had crossed the line. I wasn’t sure why Burger King thought it would be appropriate to use a highly sexualized video to promote a kid’s meal.

I realize that being a father to two daughters I can sometimes be a little over-sensitive about these things. However, it occurs to me that tying a popular cartoon character, to a kids meal, to the sexual objectification of women in a hip-hop style really does take marketing too far.

Its hard enough to keep children from being swamped with inappropriate messages, but this type of marketing just makes a parents life even harder. The ad has apparently been running during South Park, so perhaps Burger King are now trying to persuade a slightly older demographic to eat kids meals, though not sure they are going to want the free spongebob toy that comes with it.

I am not a person that tends toward the overly Politically Correct, I think that people are entitled to have a bit of fun and show their creativity, but this commercial doesn’t do that. Etrade with their baby stock trader is a great example of doing something off the wall, that is funny and creative without being offensive.

So should I just “get a hobby” as one website recommends to those who find it offensive or does this Ad make it harder for parents?

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