Saudi Arabian Pizza Hut In Trouble After Advert Mocked Stuttering
الاعلان مخالف وسيتم استدعاء الشركة واتخاذ الاجراءات النظامية اللازمة. pic.twitter.com/xbblw9RZpe
— التجارة والاستثمار (@SaudiMCI) October 22, 2017
Saudi Arabia’s Pizza Hut has issued an official apology after they published an insensitive advertisement on their Twitter on International Stammering Awareness Day.
According to an article by BBC, the advertisement used the hashtag #Global_Day_Of_Stammering, right before stating an offer for pizza in a sentence that used repeated letters and syllables to mimic a speech impediment.
The advert caused an immediate uproar among the Arab community, and some even threatened to boycott the pizza chain.
Screw you, guys. I stutter and this is so insensitive. @PizzaHut_Saudi @pizzahut pic.twitter.com/cAuByYwSPh
— غادة (@GhadaOs) October 22, 2017
@pizzahut your trending in Saudi Arabia because of offensive ads about stuttering , there is a campaign to boycott you
— 🌱 (@whimsicals25) October 23, 2017
@pizzahut
your brand name has taken a downfall in Saudi Arabia; boycotted now. save your business. but most importantly apologize.— Joe🇸🇦 (@ceaa235) October 22, 2017
Pizza Hut’s original tweet was quickly deleted, but not before Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Trade and Investment posted a screenshot of the ad, promising that “necessary measures” would be taken against the company.
An official apology was made by Pizza Hut, stating that the offending advertisement was an “irresponsible tweet against a section of society we hold dear,” and that they would work harder to support those who stammer.
