Don't Mess With the Monkey

Now that apes have equal rights in Spain it's only fair that simian representations be stricken from the airwaves. In Japan an ad for a cellphone company got the boot. See if you can guess why:

A Japanese mobile phone firm said today it had pulled a TV advert depicting a monkey as a political candidate amid accusations that it was a racist reference to Barack Obama, who is seeking to become the first black US president.

The ad, for eMobile, shows a monkey in a suit addressing an election rally, surrounded by supporters carrying placards with the word "Change".

The apparent intention is to persuade subscribers to other mobile phone carriers to transfer to eMobile.

But the combination of the monkey, and the resemblance of his message to the theme of Obama's campaign - "Change we can believe in" - prompted bloggers to accuse the company of making a racist slur against the Democratic hopeful.

You can still see the ad here on YouTube.

There is no place for humor if monkeys are involved.