Ad agency in 'virgin' controversy

It's not exactly the Pepsi Challenge.

A new teaser site, whoppervirgins.com, created by Crispin Porter Bogusky, claims to be the home of the world's "purest taste test."

Created on behalf of Crispin client Burger King, the site looks like it fell off the back of a National Geographic camel. It features people from remote Thai villages, deeper, darker Transylvania, and even the icy tundra of Greeenland.

These places were, apparently, chosen because burgers have never been seen or eaten there. In some cases, the people don't even know the word "burger." So, unlike every sad, biased human in the world, they are entirely unprejudiced when it comes to the difference between a Whopper and a Big Mac.

With a deep seriousness normally only reserved for political campaigns and dog food spots, the agency hired Stacey Peralta, director of the fine skateboarding movie Lords of Dogtown, to capture fast food history as it happens.

Of course, in the time we are being kept guessing as to the various possibilities of the test's results (I am sure many of you are betting on a Big Mac win), some small questions do tickle the back of the throat.

Very soon, this will be an Inuit Burger King.

(Credit: CC Ezioman)

How can we be sure that the Big Macs in the ad even remotely resemble real Big Macs? The story is that the food was flown in. But it's not as if they had a culinary Ronald from McDonalds on the shoot, is it? So, for all we know, those poor Inuits might, in the guise of a Big Mac, have been fed horse.

The second question that rumbles the stomach is, well, did anyone regurgitate? Will we, in fact, in the interests of documentary veracity, be subjected to the sight of a virgin burger-eater in the act of bodily rejection?

In a development that I know will have stunned the creators, the teaser site has already caused much controversy. One commenter on gothamist.com was moved to write: "I don't think indigenous people should be used in that way to amuse a bored public that wants a sensation at any price."

Oh, but it's a recession. And Whoppers are very, very cheap.

And Sharon Atkins of the Institute of Daily Nutrition told New York's bastion of daily mental nutrition, the Daily News: "It's outrageous. What's next? Are we going to start taking guns out to some of these remote places and ask them which one they like better?"

Do we actually have any evidence that guns weren't used in this case? Purely for self-protection, of course.

Still, for all those who fear this will be like a new Borat movie directed by David Lean, at the very least this campaign will happily stir the highly important burger debate around and around our cogitative intestines.

Can these really be the same people who created "I'm a PC"?

[dude7895]

I always though Burger King had the worst commercials, and this one isn't helping that opinion.

[dorianh49]

All they needs to do is let those indigenous people get a glimpse of Burger King's mascot, and those poor folks will run for their lives. I crawl into the fetal position every time I THINK about that freaky king dude.

[ChrisMatyszczyk]

Hmm, dorianh49,

and how do you feel about clowns?

Chris

[idfubar]

How could beef conceivably be part of the diet of the people Burger King is exploiting in Southeast Asia?

[karpenterskids]

Before you know it, these healthy, slim individuals will feeling burger urges, and start clamoring for fast food in their city...

And I'm sure McClown and Burger Creepy-King would be more than happy to oblige, but still...


I feel bad for wrecking lives like this. =P