(a “because its Thursday” special)
So, Oprah Winfrey recently ended her “21 day vegan challenge” and decided to cap it all off by buying everyone chicken from KFC.
I’m not even going to point out the obvious “WTF?” factor in this action. I’m not vegan by a long shot. As a dedicated omnivore, I’ve no intention of giving up my cheese or the occasional hamburger. But my girlfriend is a vegan chef, and a very talented one at that (food photos here, NOM NOM), and so eating vegan at most of my meals is not only NOT a big deal, I frankly don’t “miss” anything. And I’m sure someone of Oprah’s resources had the best of ingredients at her disposal as well. Maybe she really was craving chicken after her 3 meat-free weeks (again, for me the biggest challenge would be cheese, as there are very few cheese substitutes that can emulate the taste and mouth feel of real cheese, but I digress.) However her publicity stunt crowded mind has launched a ship that’s sinking fast.
See, Oprah didn’t just want you to participate in her self-imposed vegan flogging (that is totally what I see her short flirtation with veganism as), she also wanted you to revel in your inner cave-man right along with her… haunch of flesh gripped between your greasy mitts while teeth tear through gristle and tendon. So, she decided to buy everyone in America a piece of chicken. (But grilled skinless chicken, because grilled fast-food chicken is somehow healthier than fried chicken maybe?)
The stunt, I’m sure something both Oprah and Kentucky Fried Chicken parent company Yum Brands thought was genius, has turned into a fiasco of epic proportions with customer’s rioting at understocked stores, and even staging sit-ins. That is, its been a fiasco for those customers who could get the coupon for free chicken to print.
Remember that back in 1928, during the run up to that other economic crisis Herbert Hoover promised a “chicken in every pot”, and we all know how well that worked for him.
Maybe the next volume Oprah reads for her book club should be some kind of a history book?
I received the following e-mail from Christina, over at vegan-vanguard.blogspot.com, who was having a little trouble with the log-in. In addition to two more links to share with us ( http://civileats.com/2009/05/06/oprah-gives-out-free-kfc-in-most-hypocritical-move-yet/#more-3498
and
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kerry-trueman/lets-ask-marion-nestle-di_b_199040.html )
, Christina had the following to say:
‘I was going to start off by saying thanks for the blatant & totally biased promotion.
And that the whole episode is totally bizarre and ill-planned. In her statement after the “21 day vegan cleanse” she said that her short stint as a vegan had made her more mindful of her choices. Where has that newfound mindfulness come into play with this promotion? Was it in choosing to team up with a company that pays minimum wage–which is NOT a living wage–to its employees, a business whose parent company has recently been under fire for ads that are, at best, insensitve and mocking and at worst, shockingly racist, a company that buys its chicken from Tyson, which is known for utilizing producers who regularly engage in some of the most reprehensible practices? Or was it when she decided that, given her money, fame and clout, the best thing she could do for the United States was shovel greasy, antibiotic-ridden chicken down its gullet, because we all know that what the US needs is more fast food?
Haven’t companies learned anything from the Guns ‘N Roses/Dr. Pepper debacle? I know that the internets are vast and intimidating and sometimes scary, and that they can provide a sensory and information overload, but they, too, can be overwhelmed and someone with the visibility of Oprah or KFC can’t run a 24 hour promotion without expecting to break the interwebs and incite chaos.
Furthermore, as a vegan, I have to say that I find the sideline schadenfraude from other vegans distasteful. I don’t think it’s particularly funny that people are rioting. I don’t think it “serves them right” as I’ve heard some people, vegans and non-vegans alike, remark. To me, it is certainly not “awesome”. I feel for the employees who are just trying to make it through their workday and now have to deal with irate customers and the very real threat of bodily harm. I also feel for families who were just trying to get a free meal in these tough times.’
(I mean, seriously, how could I not love this woman? She is awesome incarnate. The coolest. The bee’s knees. The ginchiest even.–JDW)