This is Just So Wrong

This showed up today in The New York Times …

Those are cups of McDonald’s Iced Coffee on a news set.  That’s right, product placement on the news.  With logos prominently displayed.  I find this to be unbelievable.

Product placement is nothing new.  It’s pretty much everywhere.  But news anchors sipping a specific brand of iced coffee during the newscast is just appalling.  An example of the sales department running rampant.

And the news director that allowed it to happen should be ashamed.  There’s no report in the story as to whether or not he or she resigned … but he or she should have.

Most of us believe that there needs to be a bright line drawn between the newsroom and sales.  I understand that the news needs to be sold.  Advertising supports the news product.  But a product has no business on the set.

IMHO.

Of course, the station is a Fox affiliate in las Vegas.  That should be ’nuff said.

Now, they apparently only appear during the fluff segments, and the story says the anchors rarely touch the cups.  But this is really just beyond the pale. Can I be any more clear?  I think this is wrong.

Here’s hoping it’s an isolated incident.  I promise the only logo on a cup on my set will be Morning Edition from NPR News.

–scene–