“I’ll take an order of fries, a kid’s meal, and some sexy women with square butts, please.”
CBS “Early Show” hosts Maggie Rodriguez and Harry Smith giggled at the new commercial for the Burger King kid’s meal featuring sexual images inappropriate for children, including sexy women in tight outfits dancing to a parody of the notoriously raunchy tune, “Baby Got Back.”
Aimed to promote the new 99 cent children’s meal, Burger King has teamed up with Nickelodeon in a new commercial appearing on adult programs that features the popular cartoon character, SpongeBob SquarePants.
“The Early Show” noted April 10 segment that several parents groups are outraged because the commercial reflects an adult club scene in which the fast food chain’s “King” character plays a DJ remixing Sir Mixalot’s “Baby Got Back” with the lyrics changed to “I like square butts and I cannot lie.” The “King” character is seen touching and “measuring” a woman’s square behind with a tape measure.
The CBS segment was balanced providing viewers with opinions about the commercial from both sides, but that didn’t stop co-anchor Maggie Rodriguez from making light of the offensive ad.
Joe Kelly of the Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood told viewers, “SpongeBob SquarePants is a character for preschoolers and it’s being used in this highly sexualized and objectifies women and that is an incredibly outrageous message to be sending to kids.” CBS included a statement from Burger King about the advertisement saying, “(The ad is aired) only during shows targeting adult audiences … is intended to show that even adults can have fun.”
But instead of serious reflection, Rodriguez laughed about an episode of “Friends” in which the song was featured. “You know watching that, I remembered there is a famous Friends Episode where Ross and Rachel, Jennifer Aniston and David Schwimmer, are singing to their newborn baby, ‘I like big butts and’ to their newborn baby, so its, its a good beat,” Rodriguez said. But parents should remember that beat in it’s original context.
Sir Mixalot’s famously vulgar 1992 hit titled “Baby Got Back” contains lyrics that objectify women by describing their curves and their value as being measured by the “junk in their trunk.” In the original version of the song, there are more than 20 references to a woman’s behind and more than ten references to a Sir Mixalot’s desire for sex based on the woman’s “round thing in your face.”
Rodriguez, who has a young daughter, was not that concerned about the content of the commercial as she admitted to Smith that her daughter enjoys the song.
SMITH: Well, what is the controversy, by the way?
RODRIGUEZ: Because it’s, it’s a character for preschooler and so they’re advertising to preschoolers with “I like square butts?”
SMITH: Right, But I bet your kid likes that song, right its one where she bounces around?
RODRIGUEZ: She can get down, yeah.
Editor at Large
Comments Policy
I Like Square Butts...
April 10, 2009 - 15:04 ET by The Central ScrutinizerHow come no one complained when the original version of "Baby Got Back" was played joyously in the closing scene of the children's movie "Shrek"? Loosen up a little bit, folks. I watched the entire commercial on YouTube, and as a Spongebob fan (I think his show is a modern-day Rocky and Bullwinkle) I thought it was hilarious. If you are looking for bad examples being set for our children, you rarely have to go outside their homes in order to find them.
I thougth the lyrical
April 10, 2009 - 15:29 ET by SpaceManSpiffI thought the lyrical parody was quite humorous, but I found the visuals to be, well, not in line with Nickelodeon. Had they used dancers of both sexes doubt it would have been an issue with anyone.
I boycott business that use
April 10, 2009 - 15:53 ET by mattmI boycott business that use bad commercials. Typical things that irk me are inappropriate sexual inuendo, excessive male-bashing, too much pushiness, and just plain bad ads...
buy a dvr
April 10, 2009 - 15:56 ET by katainkentnever see a commercial again.
_____________________________________________________
Obama does not perform as advertised. I'd like a refund.
Taxed Enough Already.
it figures
April 10, 2009 - 16:03 ET by grumpyoldbJust another in a long line of reasons that I quit going to BK....
yeah
April 10, 2009 - 16:16 ET by katainkentwell top of the list for my family and BK - their restaraunts are, as a rule, filthy.
We stopped eating at BK &
April 10, 2009 - 16:57 ET by SpaceManSpiffWe stopped eating at BK & Hardees'/Carl's Jr. for this very reason. Low-brow advertising.
At least Jack is still funny.
I saw that commercial and
April 10, 2009 - 16:09 ET by balboaI saw that commercial and thought perhaps Sir Mix-a-lot is not the best ambassador for something featuring Spongebob. But that's about it. It's cartoonishly over the top, not really sexy or suggestive in any way.
~Annnnnd
April 10, 2009 - 16:11 ET by choselife3xThat is yet another reason why my children listen mainly to classical Baroque and traditional Celtic music.
It's all relative?
April 10, 2009 - 16:15 ET by mom_roxThis ad didn't creep me out as much as the one where a person would wake up in bed and find the "king" next to him, clothed, but still under the covers.
~All of the BK commercials are creepy
April 10, 2009 - 16:18 ET by choselife3xThat big plastic head with the disturbing leer...*shiver*
mr... That one was pathetic
April 10, 2009 - 16:24 ET by bigtimermr...
That one was pathetic too.
They really need to come up with something else...I don't care what age you are, all of BK's commericals are pretty useless...they are really paying somebody way too much $$$ for these ideas.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
Joe Kelly of the Campaign
April 10, 2009 - 16:22 ET by bigtimerJoe Kelly of the Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood told viewers, “SpongeBob SquarePants is a character for preschoolers and it’s being used in this highly sexualized and objectifies women and that is an incredibly outrageous message to be sending to kids.”
So where is the NOW crowd...and all their sisters?
Btw...Maggie is brain-dead. She really is.
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
The First Thing Wrong With That Paragraph...
April 10, 2009 - 23:03 ET by The7Sticks“SpongeBob SquarePants is a character for preschoolers..."
Uh, no, he isn't. "Blue's Clues" is for preshoolers. SpongeBob SquarePants is for drugged-out college dorm roomates who have way too much time on their hands. That, or terminal cancer patients like a late, old freind of mine who died in his late fifties and couldn't get enough of SpongeBob Squarepants. He was also a divorced father with a teenage daughter who lived in his mother's backhouse. Don't you see the first thing wrong with that? And I meant the paragraph, not the late friend's life.
That wasn't the most creative remix of Baby Got Back, though, I will admit. The most creative version was on the Simpsons Halloween Special from 2007, entitled Baby Got Fat. It's actually the least sexually suggestive of all the remixes, having more to do with Homer becoming a mutated blob-like fat people-eater. The rhyming scheme for that one was hi-larious.
As Jay Leno would say, "Ahh, Shaddup! Idiot!"
Oh Boy!
April 10, 2009 - 16:38 ET by someloudthunderI was wondering when the complaining would start against this commercial. Oh no women dancing and they aren't in long dresses that cover their ankles???My bubble of security has been destroyed!
slt... Doubling down on
April 10, 2009 - 16:41 ET by bigtimerslt...
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
LOL!
April 10, 2009 - 17:44 ET by RukusTo the point! ; )
Gary
"Things can only bother you if you let them bother you" -My Dad
No boundries
April 10, 2009 - 17:06 ET by Kingfish17Why do I get the impression that Smith and Rodriguez could, while discussing a Snuff Film that aired on television, not come to the conclusion that said broadcasting had gone too far.
Smith: Can we be 100% certain that all of the participants in this film didn't take part voluntarily? And if it was voluntary, well, what is the controversy, by the way?
Rodriguez: And yes, even though it was aired on Nickleodean, it should be the parents responsibility to monitor their children's viewing practices.
Smith: Well, we can always blame it on Friends! (chortle, chortle)
"When will Barack Obama apologize to the American people for destroying their once great nation?" - MSM 2012
Newborn Baby??
April 10, 2009 - 17:28 ET by DoktorFrankenDoes this airheaded adult (Maggie?) realize that a newborn baby cannot understand anything regarding words? What has that got to do with anything logical?
Ugh. How 'tarded...
April 10, 2009 - 18:04 ET by DeliaThis is what happens when you have 'big pimpin' and spendin' cheese' whitey hatin' type of negroids become popular. The overtly sexual 'homeys' are spreading their filth from sea to shining sea.
It's hard to fathom how many negroids with their crude, rude and lude personas have infiltrated white America. "Be a thug, ebrace street drugs, mug a whitey and especially a cop."
ICK.
Delia... ...Huh? You
April 10, 2009 - 18:14 ET by bigtimerDelia...
...Huh?
You lost me here...what do your comments in your post have to do with this blog post?
Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart
→ Delia
April 10, 2009 - 18:24 ET by Cool ArrowI think you've taken things way too far.
My hope is that you're at work, stepped away, and some racist just took over your keyboard.
I know Biden has his racist streak, and we bring it up often, but this goes too far.
Just my opinion. Please ask the Mods to erase it.
LYDSEXICS UNTIE!
I think THIS is racist:
April 10, 2009 - 21:54 ET by Deliahttp://www.youtube.c...
I also think our current TOTUS is a racist pig Muslim.
Feel free to correct me if you think I'm wrong.
Our youth are being infiltrated with SCUM. This commercial is just one more example of the obvious.
→ Me too
April 10, 2009 - 22:02 ET by Cool ArrowI also think it's racist.
I don't think the guy in the video is a NB member. I could be wrong.
LYDSEXICS UNTIE!
The "gangsta rap" culture,
April 10, 2009 - 19:22 ET by Indiana JoeThe "gangsta rap" culture, with it's inherent misogyny, sexual fixation, and rejection of societal norms in general, has infiltrated our society to the point that what was once unthinkable has now become almost the norm.
Is that what you mean? Racial references aren't needed, and detract from any point you're trying to make.
"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."-John Adams
I think we're coming down
April 10, 2009 - 19:30 ET by balboaI think we're coming down off the "gangsta" trend, thankfully. Even rap artists are starting to change. With people like LeBron, Kobe, Garnett, young kids are seeing "anti-thug" athletes more, as opposed to Iverson and those idiots.
I was merely trying to
April 10, 2009 - 19:52 ET by Indiana JoeI was merely trying to suggest to Delia a less provocative means of expressing the point I think she was trying to make. And I think it's valid: many elements of the "gangsta" culture are now pretty mainstream, and arguably detrimental to our society at large.
And while "gangsta" is maybe (?) falling out of fashion, it's influence is inescapable. There's no denying The Beatles' influence on popular music exists to this day, yet they haven't recorded in about 40 years.
"As the twig is bent, so grows the tree."
<edit: Oops, replied to myself, but I think it's obvious I'm addressing bal's reply to me.>
"Our Constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other."-John Adams
The funny thing is
April 10, 2009 - 19:56 ET by RESTLESS 1The algores and tippers and rockefellers of the world the world thought a bunch of white, middle class kids playing heavy metal would be the gateway to a subversive society. ;)
"This
liberal would be all about socialize -- uh, uh, would be about
basically taking over and the government running all of your companies."-Maxine Waters 2008
Just a guess
April 10, 2009 - 19:02 ET by RD Kingbut Delia means that each and every part of the normal societal fabric that most of us grew up with is being infiltrated and replaced by trash, whether white or black. It just so happens that way too many adamic children want to be something different today and it is just passed off as a passing fancy or a good thing called diversity. It is not a good thing to abandon your heritage.
Kids shouldn't try to be
April 10, 2009 - 19:22 ET by balboaKids shouldn't try to be individuals? To be their own person?
And if we switched to an immigration topic, you'd find people who argue that we should celebrate our American heritage, and nothing else.
~?
April 10, 2009 - 19:29 ET by choselife3xHow does jumping on the bandwagon of a passing fad equal individualism?
If the individual makes the
April 10, 2009 - 19:33 ET by balboaIf the individual makes the decision to do it, then it's their expression of self. The previous post seemed to be saying "stick to your own kind / personality."
→ Adamic children?
April 10, 2009 - 19:43 ET by Cool ArrowDidn't know there were any other kind of human children.
Just seemed peculiar.
LYDSEXICS UNTIE!
~I see your meaning more clearly now
April 10, 2009 - 19:49 ET by choselife3xPersonally, I think an awful lot of teenagers are just going with the herd.
That's the world of
April 10, 2009 - 20:04 ET by balboaThat's the world of teenagers, has been for a while. Gotta love advertising! :-)
~That's one of the reasons
April 10, 2009 - 20:15 ET by choselife3xI hated being a teenager.
That, and having a sister ten and a half years younger than I am who everyone assumed was my daughter.
Might have agreed with you King
April 10, 2009 - 19:47 ET by RESTLESS 1Except the term "negroid" was employed a couple of times. Kinda shoots your theory down.
"This
liberal would be all about socialize -- uh, uh, would be about
basically taking over and the government running all of your companies."-Maxine Waters 2008
What is wrong with the term...
April 10, 2009 - 21:49 ET by DeliaNegro and or/Negroid?
Did I say the 'N' word (which white kids who refer to themselves as 'wiggers' now use profusely due to rap songs using the n-word as a constant)?
Negroid is not a bad word. It's not like I'm calling a black aka Negro person a mongoloid. Negroid is NOT derogatory.
Calling a black person a negro or negroid is akin to someone calling me a 'Viking'. BFD.
Come on. The term is / has
April 10, 2009 - 21:54 ET by balboaCome on. The term is / has been used in a derogatory fashion for decades. You can't all of a sudden decide it's OK.
bal
April 10, 2009 - 22:01 ET by botgyou made that up
"Outside of a dog a book is man's best friend,------------inside a dog it's too dark to read" ---Groucho
balboa, since when?
April 10, 2009 - 22:05 ET by DeliaNegro/Negroid is about as inflammatory as someone calling me 'white'.
Am I 'white'? No. I'm fair skinned with shades of pink and beige but I don't take offense to being called 'white'.
Please, stop with the white guilt. I'm hardly a racist. My two best friends growing up were a black boy and girl [I refuse to call them African Americans since some of them were actually black people NOT from Africa but they are indeed negroids]. I also had a best friend who was an Asian. Is the term 'Asian' racist too?
Really. Was all of this fuss necessary? -And, for what purpose? What did this serve accept to perpetuate the B.S. PC police.
Delia
April 10, 2009 - 22:07 ET by Free StinkerAnd I'm still trying to decide if you just don't realize how your remarks seem, or if you are a "plant" from Kos or elsewhere.
Kos?
April 10, 2009 - 22:16 ET by DeliaOh Gawd! NEVER. LOL! That did make me LOL though. :))
What should we call
April 10, 2009 - 23:43 ET by cocodrieWhat should we call the Negre College Fund then?
The word "smart" can be used in a derogatory manner also. Get a life.
Jesus Loves You so much He died for you
WTF!!!!
April 11, 2009 - 00:45 ET by RESTLESS 1This isn't a question of the use of the word "negroid", and you you all damn well know it!!!
This is the original post:
This is what happens when you have 'big pimpin' and spendin' cheese'
whitey hatin' type of negroids become popular. The overtly sexual
'homeys' are spreading their filth from sea to shining sea.
It's hard to fathom how many negroids with their crude, rude and
lude personas have infiltrated white America. "Be a thug, ebrace street
drugs, mug a whitey and especially a cop."
Now, put in context, who the f#@k do you think she was talking about???
Now, if Delia were to show how I am mistaking her intent with this post, I would take her at her word, but so far all I've seen are lame attempts at "negroid" ain't offensive. Well, no, "negroid" ain't, but "...how many negroids with their crude, rude and lude..." is pigeonholing and offensive. Trust me, others have been banned for less.
"This
liberal would be all about socialize -- uh, uh, would be about
basically taking over and the government running all of your companies."-Maxine Waters 2008
Not a damn thing wrong with "negroid"
April 10, 2009 - 22:45 ET by RESTLESS 1as long as you aren't singling it out as the cause of the fall of western civilization. The word "negroid" isn't what made your post offensive. It does go towards RD King's assertion that you were talking about both "white and black".
"This
liberal would be all about socialize -- uh, uh, would be about
basically taking over and the government running all of your companies."-Maxine Waters 2008
The myth of rap
April 10, 2009 - 22:02 ET by slickwillie2001A misunderstanding about gangster rap, which I'm not sure is distinguishable from rap period, is that it is a genre mostly for
blacks. It's not. The demographics are such that rap could not survive
if the only fans were black. Look at what white high-school kids are
listening to; more white kids listen to rap than black. That's not to
say rap is more popular with white than black, -it's not. There is just
a bigger pool of potential fans in white/other kids.
So accepting
that, you have to ask if the language and culture that rap teaches is
something you want spreading outside of the rap culture. For example,
we all accept reluctantly that it is okay for blacks to use the 'n'
word in rap music, but do we know who is listening and what effect it
might have? Do we want the way that the rap artists talk about women to
spread outside of the rap culture? If it's not okay for white kids to
use the 'n' word, is it okay for them to buy the music?
Amen, Slick...
April 10, 2009 - 22:13 ET by DeliaThe outright misogyny, violence and ugliness from 'rap' is indeed troublesome.
Negroid culture is indeed overly sexualized and sleazy. I'm hardly a prude [obviously by my posts] but, I also understand that certain 'cultural changes for the worst' have been seeping into our society.
And, yes, I'm going to continue using the term Negro/Negroid because I don't find it incendiary whatsoever.
The Y-T-GUILT needs to stop. It is becoming over-the-top annoying and embarrassing. No wonder we have this idiot cretin, muslim piece of trash in office! YT GUILT
Delia
April 10, 2009 - 22:48 ET by RESTLESS 1Your use of the word "negroid" is NOT the issue. Your insistence that only "negroids" are causing the problem is.
"This
liberal would be all about socialize -- uh, uh, would be about
basically taking over and the government running all of your companies."-Maxine Waters 2008
eh
April 12, 2009 - 09:21 ET by candanceI'm sure I'll find myself in the minority here, but I thought that commercial was pretty funny. No big deal to me.
Have any of you heard of their new offering? The Pam Anderson
April 12, 2009 - 13:05 ET by pahuberburger.
Comes with hepatitus B.
Yummy ; )