Ethics Post #5

Imagine you go to UT. No really. Just for a minute. Work with me here. You go for a study abroad program in Italy. When an Italian asks you which school you go to, you proudly display the "Hook 'em Horns" sign. To your shock, the Italian gets an extremely offended look and leaves abruptly. Geez, what did you do? It was just school spirit. Actually, in Italy, that sign is, loosely translated, "Your wife is sleeping around." And that's the benign translation.

You can't expect countries to accept every one of our traditions, since they're all different. In that vein, McDonald's needs to do some research before marketing a commercial in another country. They can't be expected to know every cultural tradition of every country, but perhaps they should hire advisers before producing a commercial. This may seem like there will be more expenses for hiring a consultant, but it's needed. Think of all the money they've lost in China over this. The commercial violated the personal ethics of that country because in it, we're assuming the audience is American.