Eminem sued Apple over the use of his song's lyrics in a commercial. A family-friendly program group pulled its ad dollars when the animated "Father of the Pride" show turned out not to be so family-friendly after all. Christina Aguilera's ad for Virgin Mobile never made it to U.S. airwaves because of its controversial content. They're certainly not the Best Advertising/PR Moves of 2004 but they're not the Worst Advertising/PR Moves of 2004 either.
Start the countdown of the Worst Advertising/PR Moves of 2004 with number 5:
5. Clairol's Customers Threaten a Boycott if "The Apprentice" Contestant is Hired for Commercials
Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth made a name for herself on Donald Trump's "The Apprentice." Viewers have described her as deceitful, manipulative and other words that just shouldn't appear in print.
When word got out that Clairol was considering Omarosa to star in Herbal Essence commercials, consumers threatened a boycott. Various message boards were flooded with posts urging consumers to write Clairol and a spokeswoman for the company said early on that they were concerned about the boycott.
In the end, Clairol decided not to use Omarosa to front its products. Omarosa says she couldn't get her "moan right." Clairol says Omarosa had been filmed in a five-second ending for its Streaking Party commercial but the company had decided against using the take.
4. Low Carb Soda Frenzy Fizzles
Pop quiz: Have you had a C2 or Pepsi Edge today? In the past week? Month?
When was the last time you even saw a C2 or Pepsi Edge commercial?
Coca-Cola and PepsiCo rushed to get their low carb sodas on the market. Coca-Cola's C2 beat Pepsi Edge to store shelves by a month, but PepsiCo moved its release date up a month just to come that close.
C2 hit the market at the end of May with Pepsi Edge following in July. By August, the low carb soda craze had fizzled and sales for low carb products had declined.
3. Slim-Fast Trims Whoopi's Endorsement Deal
Who knew endorsing weight loss products could be so controversial? Not since Monica Lewinsky touted Jenny Craig has the weight loss world been thrust into the spotlight as it was when Whoopi Goldberg signed on for Slim-Fast. The weight loss company has never had a more notable face promoting its products.
But when Whoopi made anti-Bush comments at a John Kerry fundraiser, Slim-Fast acted quickly to remove her as spokeswoman as threats of a boycott surfaced. Slim-Fast's firing of Whoopi then sparked First Amendment violation protests from consumers who weren't offended by the remarks and even more threats of a boycott for removing her. The Kerry campaign said the comments "crossed the line" and Slim-Fast apologized to consumers who were offended by the remarks.