Posted on 06/18/2009 1:07:52 PM PDT by curth
A spokesman for the Olive Garden disputed a report from Politicothat the restaurant chain pulled its advertising from the David Letterman show due to jokes about Sarah Palin’s daughter.
“Information reported today by Andy Barr of Politico regarding Olive Garden’s advertising on the Late Show with David Letterman was erroneous. No authorized spokesperson for the company confirmed the information in his report,” said Olive Garden spokesman Rich Jeffers in an email to The Vote.
“The Olive Garden media schedule is planned months in advance. The schedule for the Late Show with David Letterman was completed earlier this month. We take all guest concerns seriously. And, as always, we will factor those concerns in as we plan our advertising schedule in the future,” he continued.
(Excerpt) Read more at features.csmonitor.com ...
I just read at DailyKos that the original spokesperson for Olive Garden does not actually exist. The phony spokesperson was a democrat plant.
The whole thing was staged. Olive Garden had no idea what was going on.
Here is the email response from the Unilever company that makes Hellman’s mayonaise.....YIPPPEEEE!
DON’T GIVE UP...EVER! Our emails DO count, want to know why Letterman apologized....:
Hello,
Thank you for contacting us regarding your disappointment with the program content which contained a commercial for a Unilever product. We never wish to offend anyone and your opinions are appreciated regarding this subject matter. Advertising for Hellmann’s or media buys are done months in advance and unfortunately we can’t foresee issues in the media before they come up. We appreciate the feedback from our consumers and we’ve decided to pull our online ads from the Letterman show from our advertising schedule moving forward.
We hope that this information has given you a better understanding of our advertising practices. Thank you again for taking the time to share your views with us. You can be assured that your comments will be considered as we continue to challenge our perceptions about what is appropriate for us in today’s environment.
Kind regards,
Your friends at Hellmann’s/Best Foods
Ours or theirs.
My husband and I ate there last week for our anniversary. Their lasagne was delicious. But if I knew they were the sponsor of D. Letterman after he cracked those insults towards Sarah Palin and flight attendants, I would have gone elsewhere. Living right outside New Orleans, it’s not hard to find a good place to eat.
Very good...thanks go to Unilever.
In college I rowed Crew with a guy who worked in the Olive Garden Kitchen. He said he wouldn’t feed what they prepared to a dog.
I don’t trust anything what the DailyKos says.
I wrote the Olive Garden consumer support.
Sounds more like it voted for the boycott before it voted against the boycott.
They are sticking with Dave... one more reason to avoid them like the plague.
“I’d hate to see any advertiser pull ads because of political pressure.
Ours or theirs.”
Seriously? Why? That’s the way the game is played. The advertisers fund the show. Without funding, the show gets yanked. Protesting a TV show isn’t going to to stop the show from airing, as long as it continues to make money via attracting ads. If you get the funding pulled, you get the rug pulled out from under the show. I really don’t understand your logic. Would you buy products from a company that advertises on “White Supremacy Today!”?
Letterman said some words. Words cannot harm anyone.
I don't watch Letterman, he's 'way past my bedtime.
Why the witch hunt to get rid of him? Some words?
Did you never say anything bad about Chelsea Clinton?
I sure did. How about Michelle Obama? I sure did.
What's the harm?
You want to ruin somebody because they said some words?
Strange words coming from someone who goes ape over one word.........Rush.
I merely point out that he should not be worshiped.
With Embassy Suites being the only business from the Pervert Show that has proven they are worth supporting.
PS...
Olive Garden can go to hell with their support of the Pervert Show.
Olive Garden backtracks on ads (@Dodge)
By: Andy Barr
June 18, 2009 12:53 PM EST
The Olive Garden restaurant chain is denying that it canceled all of its scheduled ads on CBS late night comic David Letterman’s “Late Show” in response to a crude joke Letterman told about Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin’s daughter and instead contends that its ad schedule concluded.
POLITICO reported Thursday that the company would pull its remaining television spots and was emailing Letterman critics with a note informing them that “there will be no more Olive Garden ads scheduled for ‘The Late Show’ with David Letterman in this year’s broadcast schedule,” citing the talk show host’s “inappropriate comments.”
“We apologize that Mr. Letterman’s mistake, which was not consistent with our standards and values, left you with a bad impression of Olive Garden,” wrote Sherri Bruen, the company’s guest relations manager.
Bruen said the company “screens network television programs whenever possible,” but explained that “telecasts, such as ‘The Late Show’ with David Letterman, are taped on a daily basis, preventing advertisers from reviewing the content prior to airing.”
Olive Garden’s manager of media relations, who asked not to be quoted on the record, confirmed to POLITICO Thursday that the emails were sent by the restaurant chain, and also confirmed that the company would be pulling its remaining television spots on the program for the rest of the year when asked that question.
But in a statement released later in the day, Olive Garden Director of Media Relations Rich Jeffers disputed POLITICO’s report as “erroneous.”
“No authorized spokesperson for the company confirmed the information in his report,” Jeffers said. “The Olive Garden media schedule is planned months in advance. The schedule for the Late Show with David Letterman was completed earlier this month. We take all guest concerns seriously. And, as always, we will factor those concerns in as we plan our advertising schedule in the future.”
When asked about the cancellation confirmation POLITICO obtained from the company’s media relations office, Jeffers responded in an email that the individual listed as the press contact on the company’s website was unauthorized to speak for the company.
“The so called ‘confirmation’ didn’t come from an authorized spokesperson for the company. The guest email you received did not say any ads were pulled. And as our statement says, the schedule — which is set months in advance — was completed earlier this month.”
The Politico 44 Story Widget Requires Adobe Flash Player.
CBS has not yet returned a call seeking comment.
Letterman has apologized for his comment last week about Palin’s daughter getting “knocked up by Alex Rodriguez” during the governor’s recent visit to a Yankees baseball game. Palin attended the game as part of a trip to New York.
“I told a joke that was beyond flawed, and my intent is completely meaningless compared to the perception,” Letterman said. “And since it was a joke I told, I feel that I need to do the right thing here and apologize for having told that joke.”
After repeatedly blasting the late night comic in statements and interviews last week, Palin accepted Letterman’s apology on Tuesday.
“Letterman certainly has the right to ‘joke’ about whatever he wants to, and thankfully we have the right to express our reaction,” she said in a statement.
(i complained to OG by e-mail)
© 2009 Capitol News Company, LLC
I don’t watch Letterman because I never thought he was funny. I don’t eat at Olive Garden because I don’t like their faux-Italian food.
But seriously, Sarah won this, time to let it go. You just make yourself look like silly whiners with Fire Letterman rallies and secondary boycotts.
Olive Garden disputes report that ads were pulled from Letterman
And I can eat some place else.
I see.... *crosses Olive Garden off list of possible places to frequent*
“You want to ruin somebody because they said some words?”
Words mean things. “From each according to his ability, to each according to his needs,” means something. “Give me liberty, or give me death,” means something. Get it through your head. Words are more powerful than any other instrument wielded by man. “Forgive them, Father, for they know not what they do.” Ring a bell?
Word’s can make a man, and they can also destroy him. I am not trying to destroy anybody. Letterman has brought this upon himself.
When a 62-year-old pederast announces to the entire country that he believes child rape is funny, especially when it happens to a conservative’s child, then he should have his broadcasting privileges revoked! If I had a talk show, and I joked about raping President Obama’s daughters, I would expect to have my broadcasting privileges revoked, too. I would deserve it. It would be my fault, just as this is Letterman’s fault. His joke about Willow wasn’t “in poor taste,” it was an attack. Those are “fighting words.”
If you were standing next to a 62 year old man on the street as a 14 year old girl walked by, and he asked her if she had sex with A-Rod in Yankee Stadium in front of 50,000 people, would you consider his comments to be “some words?” Are my words sinking in? Never mind. They’re just “some words.”
According to you, if the same man makes the same comment in front of a million people on live TV, it’s okay. That’s right....”some words.” Nobody should be “ruined” for “some words.” Apparently you haven’t paid attention to words. Words like:
“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defence,[1] promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”
“Some words.” The men who wrote and ratified those words risked their lives. But what impact can “some words” have on your life?
Words mean things. Fighting words are not protected speech in the Constitution. Letterman’s comments were “fighting words.”
Read the Constitution. Or not. After all, it’s just “some words.”
These vultures and hyenas sense a wounded animal and are doing what nature teaches them. America is badly wounded in the sense we no longer hold to self-evident 'truths'. I'll not go into the ways, but most can think of ways we've betrayed ourselves over the course of time.
Viewership will tank a show faster than anything. I haven't watched Dave since this began. I'd suggest others who feel the same way, do the same. Advertisers pay a rate based on a show's popularity. If there are no viewers, they'll go elsewhere. That's capitalism and that's what I support- vote with your dollars and viewership.
We have lost a great asset in the culture war: the media. We can't expect to get it back anytime soon. Everytime you read a newspaper or watch the news, realize you are listening to Baghdad Bob or reading Pravda. It's that bad.
Rather than trying to bankrupt a restaurant chain, we need to get behind leaders who will resurrect what was America. Get her back on her feet where she can kick these parasites in the face. The freeloaders, the statists, etc.
Individual liberty is the name- and freedom is the game. All opposed are enemies of the Republic no matter what 'letter' (D/R) follows their name. (This struggle is playing out in Iran as I type.)
Our Kenyan Ruler promised to "hit the ground running" after being elected by the media. And he has. What we as Americans MUST do is to place hurdles in his path. (I used to sprint and believe me, hurdles slow you down.)
As a small business owner, the crap, red tape, and hurdles I have to jump everyday are endless and growing. Under this Banana Republican things will inevitably get worse.
We the People hold the key with our vote. If we don't vote every collectivist, statist, bureaucrat, mush-brained-liberal out of office, we're dead. Freedom will die, liberty will die, and we'll be reduced to a life of slavery. This isn't an option for me. I can remember a time when America was much freer. Today, there's almost nowhere you can go to escape the stench of the nanny state.
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