Makeup Beat

Stone’s ads for Dior will not be seen in China due to the actresses “karma” comment during the Cannes Film Festival. China is p*ssed to say the least. Sharon is getting the reputation of being a bit of a whacko these days.

“Facing the possibility of a boycott of its products, the luxury company said Thursday that it had dropped the American actress Sharon Stone from its advertising in China after she suggested last week that the earthquakes in Sichuan Province were karmic retribution for the country’s treatment of Tibet.
The gaffe, which has provoked calls for a boycott of Ms. Stone’s films, received sharp criticism in the media. The state-run Chinese news agency, Xinhua, referred to the actress in an editorial on Thursday as “public enemy of all mankind.”The Associated Press quoted an executive at Dior’s Shanghai office as saying that the ads featuring Ms. Stone would no longer appear in China. And Dior released a statement in which Ms. Stone apologized, saying: “Due to my inappropriate words and acts during the interview, I feel deeply sorry and sad about hurting Chinese people. I am willing to take part in the relief work of China’s earthquake, and wholly devote myself to helping affected Chinese people.”
Dior had let the situation fester for a week before finally canceling the ads. Ms. Stone said last week in an interview at the Cannes Film Festival: “I’m not happy about the way the Chinese are treating the Tibetans because I don’t think anyone should be unkind to anyone else. And then the earthquake and all this stuff happened, and then I thought, is that karma? When you’re not nice bad things happen to you?”
With the Beijing Olympic Games only months away, companies and advertisers have focused on China. “Companies are trying to increase their Chinese market share,” said Graham Hales, of the Interbrand consulting firm in London. “They’re not going to want to offend anyone.” source: The New York Times.