Skip to main content

Groupon’s Tibet Super Bowl ad offends everyone

Aside from deciding the champion of pigskin, the Super Bowl has long been the time when companies roll out their most high-budget, titillating or controversial commercials. But last night, collaborative coupon-savings company Groupon apparently took a step too far.

In case you missed last night’s big game, here’s what happened: Groupon’s ad, for which the two-year-old company paid $3 million to air, opens with shots of the beautiful landscape of Tibet — a county that has suffered under the heavy hand of communist China since 1951.

“The Tibetan people are in trouble,” says actor Timothy Hutton in a voiceover. “Their very culture is in jeopardy.”

And then it all goes to hell.

“But they still whip up an amazing fish curry!” says Hutton, now sitting comfortably in a restaurant.

From here, he segues into why Groupon is so great: Members of Groupon saved a life-changing $15 on dinner at Himalayan restaurant in Chicago! Yes, 15 whole dollars! Hurray!

Watch the ad:

By using the troubles of the Tibetan people to advertise its services, Groupon managed to infuriate, well, everyone. Seconds after the spot aired, Twitter erupted with posts of outrage about the commercial. And the hate-fest has only increased this morning, with outlets like Forbes reporting that both Chinese and Tibetan activists were outraged by the ad. (The Chinese didn’t like the fact that the commercial declared the Tibetan people “in trouble” — a fact they vehemently dispute; and, obviously, Tibetans don’t like it because their plight has been cheapened by becoming the set up for a $15 coupon.)

Despite all the righteous indignation, however, Groupon has defended (or at least explained) the commercial on the company blog:

The gist of the concept is this: When groups of people act together to do something, it’s usually to help a cause. With Groupon, people act together to help themselves by getting great deals. So what if we did a parody of a celebrity-narrated, PSA-style commercial that you think is about some noble cause (such as “Save the Whales”), but then it’s revealed to actually be a passionate call to action to help yourself (as in “Save the Money”)?

Since we grew out of a collective action and philanthropy site (ThePoint.com) and ended up selling coupons, we loved the idea of poking fun at ourselves by talking about discounts as a noble cause. So we bought the spots, hired mockumentary expert Christopher Guest to direct them, enlisted some celebrity faux-philanthropists, and plopped down three Groupon ads before, during, and after the biggest American football game in the world.

Additionally, Groupon has set up a website, SaveTheMoney.org, where people can see additional ads, and donate money to four “featured charities” — Greenpeace, Rainforest Action Network, buildOn, and the Tibet Fund. Groupon says it will match any donations contributed through their site up to $100,000.

We know it’s hard enough to get your idea across to millions of people in only 30 seconds. But perhaps Groupon would have been wise to include some of these facts in the ad, too. Just an idea…

Editors' Recommendations

Topics
Andrew Couts
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Features Editor for Digital Trends, Andrew Couts covers a wide swath of consumer technology topics, with particular focus on…
This JBL waterproof Bluetooth speaker is 43% off right now
JBL Xtreme 2 on a beach.

Bring the party with you wherever you go with a portable Bluetooth speaker like the JBL Xtreme 2, which is currently on sale from Best Buy at 43% off. From its original price of $350, it's down to a more affordable $200 for savings of $150. We're not sure how much time is remaining for you to take advantage of this offer though, so if you're interested, you're going to have to proceed with the transaction as soon as possible. The bargain may be gone by tomorrow, so complete the purchase today if you can.

Why you should buy the JBL Xtreme 2 Bluetooth speaker
JBL is one of the best speaker brands with portable audio as its calling card, so it's not a surprise that there are multiple JBL devices in our roundup of the best Bluetooth speakers. The JBL Xtreme 2 isn't the latest version in its line -- the JBL Xtreme 4 has already been released -- but it's still a fantastic Bluetooth speaker by today's standards with powerful audio using your mobile device as the source. If you prefer a wired connection over Bluetooth, the JBL Xtreme 2 also offers auxiliary audio input.

Read more
Apple’s AirPods Pro earbuds are back at their cheapest-ever price
Apple AirPods Pro 2 inside their charging case, near iPhone 14.

The second-generation Apple AirPods Pro with USB-C are back down to their cheapest-ever price of $189 on Amazon, for savings of $60 on their sticker price of $249. If you don't own the wireless earbuds yet, or if you're thinking about upgrading from an older model, here's another chance at this discount. However, like with most AirPods deals, we don't think it will last long, so if you want to take advantage of the bargain, you're going to have to proceed with the purchase right away.

Why you should buy the Apple AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C
The Apple AirPods Pro 2 with USB-C are featured in our list of the best wireless earbuds as the top choice for Apple fans, partly because of how easy it is to pair them with an iPhone or iPad. Just open their charging case, hold it close to your device, and you're done after a few taps. The Apple AirPods Pro 2 also offer solid audio quality with the capability for wireless lossless audio and Apple's immersive Spatial Audio, so you'll enjoy your favorite music even more.

Read more
Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones are back at their Black Friday price
Sony WH-1000XM5 headphones seen in silver.

Here's a highly recommended offer from Crutchfield if you're on the lookout for headphone deals -- the Sony WH-1000XM5 for $328, which is what they were going for during last year's Black Friday. If you weren't able to buy them for this cheap for any reason, here's another chance at the $70 discount on their original price of $398. We're not sure how long stocks will last though, so if you want to buy these wireless headphones for a more affordable price, you're going to have to add them to your cart and check out as soon as possible.

Why you should buy the Sony WH-1000XM5 wireless headphones
There are multiple reasons why the Sony WH-1000XM5 reign supreme in our roundup of the best headphones, but it all begins with its impressive active noise cancellation that allows them to stand out among other wireless headphones. They're very comfortable to wear, so you'll be able to maximize their long battery life of up to 30 hours on a single charge with ANC activated and up to 40 hours without it, and they'll allow you to call up Amazon's Alexa or Google Assistant through voice commands.

Read more