Groupon Tibet Super Bowl Commercial Attracts Ire Of Critics

Groupon, the popular US company that provides bulk discounts to online shoppers, has sparked a furor online after it aired an advertisement during last night’s Super Bowl game which poked fun at the political turmoil in Tibet.

In the commercial that has sparked a controversy, features Dominick & Eugene actor Timothy Hutton dining in a Chicago-area Himalayan restaurant. “The people of Tibet are in trouble, their very culture in jeopardy,” Hutton remarks, pointing at China’s refusal to grant autonomy to the state. Hutton then jokingly adds that despite the crisis, the Himalayan state is able to “whip up a great fish curry” and goes on to talk about the discount that he and other Groupon users received at a restaurant in Chicago.

The company’s first Super Bowl commercial attracted flak online from viewers, many of which slammed Groupon’s reference to the political scenario in Tibet. Others have described the ad as “tasteless” and belitting to the suffering of the Tibetan people. Following the controversy, officials with the internet voucher company released a statement in a bid to explain airing the controversial commercial.

“Since we grew out of a collective action and philanthropy site — ThePoint.com — and ended up selling coupons, we loved the idea of poking fun at ourselves by talking about discounts as a noble cause,” the company wrote on its Official Blog as negative Tweets flooded Twitter after Sunday’s broadcast.

The furor comes on the heels of attempts by Groupon to expand its services to China.