Outrage Over Muffin Billboard

I found this bit of news amusing. We all know the term "muffin top" in reference to excess weight that sits around the hips and tends to pour out over tight pants. I have referred to my own excess weight on the hips as a muffin top, but mostly I call it my inner tube or spare tire, since it seems the one place the weight won't leave no matter how hard I try.

Anyway, in Michigan there is a billboard advertisement for a plastic surgeon's office that was vandalized and has been receiving a lot of criticism. The ad has an image of two muffins sitting in tins that look like jeans, an the text reads: "Friends don't let friends muffin top" then gives the name of the surgeon and contact information. Someone defaced the billboard, covering the muffins with smiley faces, crossing out the text and writing "you're beautiful"on it.

While I applaud the vandal's want to make people feel better, it is not meant to be taken serious. It's meant to be humorous. A lot of people are very upset over the ad, saying that it is body shaming and is full of negativity, and so forth. They are happy with what the vandal did, Then there are others saying there's nothing wrong with it, people being overweight and obese is all too common, etc.

Clearly, the ad is working because people are talking about it; it's in the news. That whole notion of bad publicity is better than no publicity holds true. A good advertisement gets people talking. The whole purpose of advertisements is to get word out. This billboard is receiving press around the globe, thanks mostly to social media.

Apparently though, this isn't the first time that Ann Arbor Plastic Surgery has received backlash over their advertisements. They previously had a billboard using similar humor regarding breast implants. That one had an image of two cups of coffee on it labeled "B" and "D" and said "Size Matters". . . now I can see how that one would anger people, mainly women, because of the shame it imposes upon small breast size and the need for larger ones, and it's sexualization of women. That would upset me a lot more because what woman wants to feel inadequate or insecure about their sexual being? I'll admit I am sensitive of my own small breast size, but when it comes to weight––that's a health matter. Whether your breasts are large or small, doesn't matter. But if you're over or under weight, that can have a serious impact on your physical well-being.


So is the billboard offensive? Is it funny? Depends on who you ask. Everyone sees and reads things differently.