Ashton Kutcher Ad Called Racist, Yanked Offline
An online ad featuring Ashton Kutcher as an Indian man has been pulled offline after viewers called it racist.
The images and video for Popchips feature the 34-year-old "Two and a Half Men" star in brown makeup portraying a Bollywood producer named Raj who is "looking for love." They were removed from YouTube and Facebook after being criticized online.
Other videos featuring Kutcher as a stoner, tattooed Southerner and pasty fashionista remain online.
A spokeswoman for Popchips says the dating parody featuring the four characters was "created to provoke a few laughs and was never intended to stereotype or offend anyone." She added that the company hopes "people can enjoy this in the spirit it was intended."
A spokeswoman for Kutcher hasn't return messages seeking comment.
Best marketing strategy: upset a class of society which is not an adept of your brand, and draw more attention afterwards by apologizing and stating it was never your intent. Basic PR stint... not worth being mentioned here.