Apple removed the latest short film from its The Underdogs: OOO (Out of Office) Series set in Thailand. The tech giant removed it due to complaints about stereotypical depictions of Thailand and its people in certain scenes.
tech/2840337/apple-apologises-and-removes-controversial-ad” rel=”nofollow noopener” target=”_blank” data-ylk=”slk:The Bangkok Post;cpos:1;pos:1;elm:context_link;itc:0;sec:content-canvas” class=”link “> reports that Apple has issued an apology to the people of Thailand for the fifth film in its series. Helpless Series. The series of ads features a group of travel-weary office workers who tour the world using various Apple products.
Several viewers posted comments criticizing the use of a sepia filter to make Thailand look underdeveloped. Commenters also criticized the costume and set design decisions in the airport scene, which uses dated depictions of Thai citizens.
Sattra Sripan, spokesman for the tourism committee of Thailand's House of Representatives, called for a boycott of the advertisement.
“Thai people are deeply unhappy with the announcement,” Sripan said in a statement. “I encourage Thai people to stop using Apple products and switch to other brands.”
Apple issued an apology for the ad shortly after removing it from YouTube. Lawmakers have also invited Apple representatives to meet with them to discuss the ads and how they portray Thailand in movies.
“We intended to celebrate the country’s optimism and culture, and we apologize for not fully capturing the vibrancy of modern-day Thailand,” the statement read.
This is the second time this year that Apple has apologized for a commercial that said Adage “It missed the mark” with its slim new iPad Pro. The commercial shows a giant pneumatic press crushing a large collection of items used in or to represent creative projects, such as musical instruments, paintings, a generic arcade machine, and photography equipment. The steel crusher crushes everything and lifts it up to reveal an intact iPad sitting on the bottom steel block that a voiceover describes as “the most powerful iPad ever is also the thinnest.”
Artists, musicians and other creators took offense to the ad’s implicit tone, which said generative ai would replace human artistic initiatives. Apple promised not to air the ad on television, but it remains on its YouTube page with the comments section disabled.
