Comments on: Citroen offends the Chinese People!

By: Subaru upsets China with Chaiman Mao ad « Mid-Hudson Subaru

Subaru upsets China with Chaiman Mao ad « Mid-Hudson Subaru — Thu, 03 Mar 2011 21:08:36 +0000

[...] company to anger the Chinese internet with an advert that passed certain cultural boundaries, in 2008 Citroen upset the Chinese people in Spain with a picture of Mao Ze Dong with his face crunched … of course this was prior to the Olympic torch relay issue in Paris which kicked off several months [...]

By: What Not To Do When Advertising For China | ChinaluxuryToday

What Not To Do When Advertising For China | ChinaluxuryToday — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 21:14:24 +0000

[...] audience that is not in on the joke. In many cases, such as both Subaru's italian promotion and Citroen's Spanish promotion that featured a cartoonified Mao Zedong, the intended audience were not even Chinese. However, in [...]

By: Subaru angers China with Italian Mao advert

Subaru angers China with Italian Mao advert — Tue, 01 Mar 2011 14:24:51 +0000

By: Fung

Fung — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 00:23:56 +0000

For chinese people, this ad is non-sense, I just smiled at it and didnt think that it do make any sense to me. For me, this artwork is not an insult, nor a speech of any logical sense to me, just an artwork, maybe a bit modern, a modern artwork in nature dont really make any sense in the realistic. Mao is a great leader to us, he paved the way to our current great success. He has his good and bad, we all know. Its just see how naive people are if they laughing on him and on his goods and bads. No help to the insulting and breaking our hearts, but showing the stupidity and naive and childish of the people like you. Come on, no one we are really scared of now.

By: woxihuanpijiu

woxihuanpijiu — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 17:34:17 +0000

That last one isn’t that bad… you should see my fearless leader on a good day http://www.nzhistory.net.nz/media/photo/prime-minister-at-waitangi

By: Ash

Ash — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 14:31:14 +0000

http://static3.photo.sina.com.cn/orignal/48670cb244406c6ad1e62

One more

By: Ash

Ash — Mon, 21 Jan 2008 12:15:28 +0000

http://img.autohome.com.cn/album/2008/1/18/a8076ea7-91ca-4f7c-affe-06a606114c9e.jpg

Chinese net users getting their own back….

By: Ash

Ash — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 14:22:18 +0000

Ming, good call.

Are you merciless?

By: Ming

Ming — Sun, 20 Jan 2008 12:59:00 +0000

Deeply offensive advert. Chinese people have VERY mixed feelings for Mao Zedong. Those who pay tribute to him for his achievements will be offended by the disrespect shown to him. Those who hate him for the bloody cost in human lives for his achievements will also be offended by the ignorant crass commercialization of the suffering of millions of people. Can you imagine an advert using the Holocaust to sell insecticide? or maybe the Ethiopian famine to sell grocery produce? maybe the Rwandan genocide to sell machetes?

ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTING.

YOU KNOW WHAT OFFENDS ME? quote: “…we can say that living in a democracy with free speech!!”

It’s that blaise attitude that pours salt onto my wounds. Its not enough that my family suffered but have that suffering be a subject of Mockery too. And then told we deserve to suffer because we aren’t free. Why thank you!

By: woxihuanpijiu

woxihuanpijiu — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 13:22:50 +0000

……. or even worse. Big brother will stop us being able to view the site in China… I am guessing he is watching

By: mundosanto

mundosanto — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 13:07:10 +0000

DEAL! with most pleasure.
But we better keep this bussines out of here or Ash will get us banned.
jajajajaja!

By: Windy

Windy — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 13:02:54 +0000

I know your “American and all”, but I am still just slightly suprised that you think China is a European nation.

By: woxihuanpijiu

woxihuanpijiu — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 10:26:26 +0000

I’ll give you 100 kuai to go to Tiananmen and shout that out as loud as you can

By: mundosanto

mundosanto — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 08:49:41 +0000

Chinese people is way too sensitive and seems that everything is an offense for them. Mao is just another man in the history of humanity, HE IS NOT A GOD!

By: slade

slade — Fri, 18 Jan 2008 01:21:05 +0000

I’m feeling a little left out of all this ill feeling between European nations…being American and all!

By: Colin G

Colin G — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 14:12:18 +0000

That would explain a lot!!

By: Nick in Shanghai

Nick in Shanghai — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 11:31:40 +0000

He’s probably English

By: jackson liu

jackson liu — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 11:11:57 +0000

interesting… jackson LI…!
not to be confused by me, please.. =)

Mr Li, where are you from?

By: Rabbi of Response

Rabbi of Response — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 09:14:43 +0000

Offending a large group of people is not wise.

When you are selling to that group through
media advertising, that’s even more unwise.

The Chinese people are a proud nation. They
should be respected and so should their symbols
and what they hold to be important, be repected
as well.

If they are offended, and that causes them not
to make a purchase of a marketable good – then
if the name of your game is “Business”, you remember
the famous motto that built many a business in the past:

“The Customer Is Always RIGHT!”

This is a good example of how being cute in
advertising can be very dangerous to your company’s
bottom line!

I would recommend to Lifan to use this advertisement
to their advantage, however.

And I can show them exactly how to do it!

All they have to do is contact me, and I’ll show them how
to sell more automobile than they can manufacture!

The Rabbi of Response

By: woxihuanpijiu

woxihuanpijiu — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 08:33:18 +0000

That’s a little extreme….. How do we know the ad wasn’t designed by a Spaniard?

By: jackson li

jackson li — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 07:41:06 +0000

French people must die!

By: Slade

Slade — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 02:55:27 +0000

blockquote cite=”(not that they need it for 08 anyway).”

Touche!

I’m sorry I’m not able to put the accent over the e. I hope I haven’t insulted the French nation.

Good points here about National Maturity.

By: Ash

Ash — Thu, 17 Jan 2008 00:46:09 +0000

English people are Gentleman Thugs, if you dont mind.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raffles,_Gentleman_Thug

By: Shi Enlai

Shi Enlai — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 21:42:41 +0000

please, chinese people, don’t feel anger. i think that chairman mao (happily) isn’t any more that high moral ideal and authority (and there are reasons why). so look at it as a creative practical joke.

By: woxihuanpijiu

woxihuanpijiu — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 17:02:58 +0000

It’s the way the ad is made with it being a comedic stab at Mao Zedong. So far there hasn’t been any riots in the streets yet but most Chinese will defend his name if it is desecrated.
Many of us come from countries where free speech is taken for granted so it’s easy to make jokes about our own politicians (most of them deserve it) but here it is not common (or a good idea) to make fun of party leaders, past or present.
Chairman Mao is the father of modern China. Most of us would defend our parents if they were being attacked. Many of my Chinese friends have a picture of Chairman Mao hanging in their house, as do most schools.
Citroen made a boo boo, these things happen. It’s how well they deal with it that will see how quickly the flames are put out. Issuing an apology via Reuters won’t do much within China, the local press will use this to stir up a bit of nationalism for the year (not that they need it for 08 anyway).

By: woxihuanpijiu

woxihuanpijiu — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:26:17 +0000

I thought I better check that after I wrote it and noticed it as well… I have no problem insulting the French, even the good ones I know

By: Colin G

Colin G — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:11:29 +0000

I thought everyone hated the French anyway? They’re always the butt of jokes in the UK and the US. They do make fine cars, great diesels and fantastic cheese and wine. But they’re still the butt of a lot of European jokes. Also, apparantly, Italians are cowards, Germans have no sense of humour, English people are thugs and Scots are whisky drinking fat people. But it’s humour and we laugh it off.

That’s what comes with free speech and the maturity to know when it’s humour and not actually putting down an entire nation.

By: jackson liu

jackson liu — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:51:37 +0000

damn, the last post wasn’t supposed to come as a reply here, my bad!

By: jackson liu

jackson liu — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:50:36 +0000

>>people make fun of G. Bush all the time, what’s the big deal on laughing on some funny ad, for god’s sake. [2]

By: jackson liu

jackson liu — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:50:02 +0000

people make fun of G. Bush all the time, what’s the big deal on laughing on some funny ad, for god’s sake.

By: MGBMAN72

MGBMAN72 — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:35:37 +0000

I hope they did one of “W,” should be pretty easy to do. I can not seem to get enough of him being humiliated!!!

By: chengdude

chengdude — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 15:02:06 +0000

..I believe that’s “faux pas” by the way…wouldn’t want to gravely insult the whole French nation

By: chengdude

chengdude — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 14:55:05 +0000

Fantastic ad, although the Caesar bit is a little overblown. Should have stuck with the revolution line. Love the C4 as well…saw one for the first time in the paint here in China (don’t get them in the U.S., pity).

I love how netizens in China take every opportunity to cry “insult to the Chinese people” whenever there’s a perceived slight by a foreign enterprise, yet seem to have no problem with unmercifully mocking/excoriating/hounding a 13 year-old girl for her stage-managed comments on CCTV news. Now that’s insulting to the Chinese people.

And Windy, with free speech also comes the maturity to accept different views from your own and allow those views to be expressed openly.

Thumbs down to Citroen for caving so quickly…however understandable given their position and their bottom line.

By: woxihuanpijiu

woxihuanpijiu — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 14:37:57 +0000

I will admit I make fun or various things in China on a regular basis (to keep my sanity while living here) but insulting the great chairman is a bit of ‘faux pa’.
Does anyone mind if we round up a bunch of hardcore communists and tip over a few French cars…. any brand would be fine.

By: Castro

Castro — Wed, 16 Jan 2008 14:17:11 +0000

Here you have the image without copyright:

http://i6.tinypic.com/6ks8whw.jpg