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Is This Ashton Kutcher Ad Racist?

By: Sara

Ashton Kutcher is courting controversy once again. This time it centers on an online commercial he did for a potato chip company called Popchips. The series of ads are meant to look like commercials for a dating service and Ashton plays several characters (a biker, a hippie, and a fashion designer). The character that has people up in arms is called "Raj". To portray him, Ashton put on brown makeup and adopted a fake Indian accent. Is it just playing a comic character, or racism?

Some of the comments on the original YouTube channel for the ad said things like, "If you are of Indian descent and not offended by this, you are a sad representation of your people." But other viewers countered, "Political correctness makes sense sometimes. But you are completely overdoing if you feel offended by this video."

The Popchips people put out a statement and said, "The ad was created to provoke a few laughs and was never intended to stereotype or offend anyone. At Popchips we embrace all types of shapes, flavors and colors, and appreciate all snackers, no matter their race or ethnicity. We hope people can enjoy this in the spirit it was intended."

The ad featuring Raj has been pulled down, and so far there is no comment from Kutcher.

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