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children’s book Chew on This. One reason for this new aggressive response strategy may
be because McDonald’s was caught “flat footed” by the book Fast Food Nation in 2001
and documentary Super Size Me in 2004. 105 Another reason may be because the book
Chew on This targets McDonald’s most valuable customers, children. 106 A memo
outlining a plan sent by McDonald’s to franchisees referred to possible attempts to
“discredit the message and the messenger” in preparation for the release of the movie,
Fast Food Nation, and referred to the release of the film as a “big concern to us.” 107
McDonald’s has denied the memo.
The publisher of Chew on This claimed that the fast food industry’s response to
the book has been a “Swift Boat-style campaign against Eric [Schlosser, the author]
rather than focusing on ways to improve adolescent health. Clearly the industry believes
that when you cannot refute the message, it is better to go after the messenger.” 108 An
example of this type of tactic by McDonald’s surfaced when their Vice President of
Corporate Communication attended a book signing event Schlosser held at a school. 109
The VP sat next to a reporter covering the event and explained to the reporter that
Schlosser was not presenting a balanced perspective or providing an accurate portrayal of
McDonald’s.
4.2 McDonald’s Blog
One initiative toward more open dialogue about the issues for which McDonald’s
has been criticized for more than a decade is a new corporate blog introduced in
February, 2006 by McDonald’s Senior Director for Corporate Responsibility, Bob
Langert,. 110 Langert announced:
“We want to open our doors to corporate social responsibility at McDonald’s—to
share what we’re doing and learn what you think. I want to use this blog to
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