New Ringtone Pulled

[nbcrusader]

Cingular Pulls Offensive Ringtone

BROWNSVILLE, Texas -- Cingular Wireless LLC pulled a ringtone from its Web site Tuesday after learning that it carried a message the company called "blatantly offensive."

The cell phone company became aware of the ringtone, which uses mixed English and Spanish and threatens deportation, after an inquiry from a reporter for The Brownsville Herald.

The newspaper reported in its online edition Tuesday that the ringtone started with a siren, followed by a male voice saying in a Southern drawl, "This is la Migra," a slang term for the Border Patrol.

"Por favor, put the oranges down and step away from the cell phone. I repeat-o, put the oranges down and step away from the telephone-o. I'm deporting you back home-o," the voice continued.

Hispanic activists called the product racist.

"It's horribly offensive and a disgusting thing," Brent Wilkes, national executive director of the League of United Latin American Citizens, told the newspaper.

Cingular removed the $2.49 ringtone, among thousands available for downloading from its Web site, Tuesday afternoon, said company spokesman Mark Siegel.

"Needless to say, we deeply regret and apologize for it ever being there in the first place. The ringtone is blatantly offensive," he said.

The ringtone became available between late February or early March and was downloaded eight times, Siegel said. It was developed by Barrio Mobile, Siegel said. Barrio Mobile is a brand owned by Lagardere Active North American, the U.S. division of a French media company.

 

[A_Wanderer]

Perfectly fine, if a company wants to protect it's business by pulling a product or service that offends people - same goes for a company that wants to make money by appealing to the bigot market.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

That is quite offensive

 

[nbcrusader]

That is quite a caricature of a southern redneck.

 

[BVS]

That is quite a caricature of a southern redneck.

Yeah, I've met these caricatures.

 

[nbcrusader]

Does that validate the use of offensive stereotypes?

 

[BVS]

Does that validate the use of offensive stereotypes?

Well I think this ringtone just paints a racists as a racists, I really don't think it paints all southeners as racists.

But that being said, no stereotypes are stereotypes and shouldn't be used. If I were to venture the ringtone was made by a racist, for I can't really see anyone else thinking it's funny.

 

[BAW]

But was this ringtone truly directed toward the redneck consumer?

Barrio Mobile markets their products toward urban Hispanics and I think it's more of a slam toward la Migra/white males than it is a slam at Hispanics. Stereotypes work both ways.

 

[jer2911]

But was this ringtone truly directed toward the redneck consumer?

Barrio Mobile markets their products toward urban Hispanics and I think it's more of a slam toward la Migra/white males than it is a slam at Hispanics. Stereotypes work both ways.

exactly. The ringtone is obviously a slam against those who view hispanics in this way.

 

[nbcrusader]

But was this ringtone truly directed toward the redneck consumer?

Barrio Mobile markets their products toward urban Hispanics and I think it's more of a slam toward la Migra/white males than it is a slam at Hispanics. Stereotypes work both ways.

So, is the League of United Latin American Citizens "protecting" urban Hispanics, or white males?

 

[BAW]

So, is the League of United Latin American Citizens "protecting" urban Hispanics, or white males?

Barrio Mobile created and sold this ringtone on their own website before Cingular picked it up. The redneck male is hardly in their demographic. Who would have used this ringtone if Cingular hadn't made it widely available?

 

[deep]

Cingular Says Pulled Ringtone Was Satire
May 11 8:15 PM US/Eastern


BROWNSVILLE, Texas


The company that developed the lyrics for a ringtone about deportation apologized Thursday after Cingular Wireless LLC pulled it for being offensive.

Barrio Mobile said the ringtone "La Migra" _ a slang term for Border Patrol agent _ was satire and shouldn't be taken seriously.

Mexican-American comic Paul Saucido wrote the ringtone that features a male voice, acting as a Border Patrol agent with a Southern drawl, saying, "I repeat-o, put the oranges down and step away from the telephone-o. I'm deporting you back home-o."

"His position is that people of Hispanic background need to maintain a sense of humor about the immigration situation," said Jonathan Dworkin, a vice president of Cellfish Media, which distributed the ringtone.

Cingular pulled the ringtone from its Web site Tuesday.

Barrio Mobile and Cellfish Media are owned by Lagardere Active North American, the U.S. division of a French media company.

 

[nbcrusader]

This incident sheds a little light on the current state of racial politics. Intent is no longer considered.

 

[deep]

Intent is no longer considered.

should intent always be considered?

 

[nbcrusader]

Intent is usually an integral factor to consider when placing judgment.

Now, certain aspects of speech are treated as strict liability for some people.