Ford Apologises to Berlusconi Over ‘Kidnap’ Commercials
Global automotive giant Ford has issued an apology to former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi after an advert appeared in India showing a cartoon of him driving a car with a trio of women tied up in the boot of the car.
Mr Berlusconi was shown in the driver’s seat with a slogan: “Leave your worries behind with Figo’s extra-large boot.”
Similar ads have also appeared. One features Paris Hilton apparently kidnapping reality television rivals the Kardashian sisters and Formula One driver Michael Schumacher abducting his male racing competition.
All adverts have since been pulled.
The company said it regretted the incident and called the images “contrary to the standards of professionalism and decency within Ford.”
“We deeply regret this incident and agree with our agency partners that it should have never happened,” Ford said.
Did Roman Abramovich Get Arrested on Monday?
Much to the delight of Manchester United fans, reports flooded the Internet on Monday claiming that Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich had been arrested in the United States. Perhaps spending RM236 million on Fernando Torres really was a crime?
Over the weekend Russian oligarch and his long time business rival, Boris Berezovsky (who was beaten by Abramovich in a high profile multibillion dollar court case last year), was found dead in his home in the UK and rumours swirled that the two events were somehow connected.
The rumours claimed that he had been arrested by US intelligence services in New York and were backed up by Russian media shortly after. However, his Moscow-based agent on Monday denied the reports.
“He is in the U.S., but he has not been arrested or detained,” he said.
The denial, however, did nothing to stop shares in his London-listed steel firm Evraz from tumbling more than 6 per cent before recovering.
With an estimated fortune of $14.6billion, he is currently the 5th richest person in Russia and the 50th in the world, according to the 2012 Forbes list.