Digiday Publishing Summit:

Connect with execs from The New York Times, TIME, Dotdash Meredith and many more

SECURE YOUR SEAT

McDonald’s apologizes for stealing photos to use for its ads

McDonald’s admitted to pulling a Fat Jew, but at least it’s apologizing. A few weeks ago, the fast food chain launched a Twitter campaign promoting its $2.50 double cheeseburger combo with a series of photos, including one in which a model declares her love in chalk for the meal deal.

mcdonaldsad

The pictures looked awfully familiar to Kristina Bakrevski and David Sikorski. The couple is accusing the chain of lifting the idea from their viral mock announcement of an engagement to burrito back in June.

Everything from model’s clothes to the bucolic settings were copied, Sikroski told Adweek.

“The photos used by McDonald’s are not a spin-off or a take on it,” he said, “but an exact duplicate from the wardrobe, the positions and the concept. Neither myself, my photographer or the licensing company were approached for permission.”

A friend alerted him to a sponsored tweet showing the pictures, which prompted them to publicly call out McDonald’s from his Twitter account:

McDonald’s is now saying sorry to the pair and blaming its agency for the mishap.

“This shouldn’t have happened and, with our agency partner, we’re working to find out how it did. We’re reaching out to David Sikorski and Kristina Bakrevski. We apologize to them, their fans and ours,” McDonald’s said in a statement to Digiday.

McDonald’s deleted the pictures from its Twitter account last night. Sikorski told Adweek he would “love” to be paid for the concept, but he’ll probably have to settle for a gift card.

Photos via McDonald’s.

https://digiday.com/?p=132370

More in Marketing

Illustration of a social media post with hearts, showing a chat bubble with a dollar sign, purse, and shoe, representing how creators use automated marketing tools to monetize content.

In Graphic Detail: Inside the state of the creator economy industrial complex

The creator economy might have started out as an alternative to traditional media, but is becoming more and more like it as it professionalizes.

Shopify has quietly set boundaries for ‘buy-for-me’ AI bots on merchant sites

The change comes at a time when major retailers like Amazon and Walmart are leaning into agentic AI.

WTF is ‘Google Zero’?

The era of “Google Zero” — industry shorthand for a world where Google keeps users inside its own walls — is here.