This McDonald’s ad for its Pound Saver Menu has been skewered in the United Kingdom for its inaccurate use of the English language:
(http://josecarilloforum.com/imgs/MacDonaldsadflap.jpg)
According to a report in Sky News Online yesterday (January 24), the ad’s opening statement, “the pound, also known as a bob,” isn’t true, strictly speaking. In the UK, its critics argue, a “bob” is a term for a shilling or five pence, which is of far less value than a pound.
Marie Clair, spokeswoman of the London-based Plain English Campaign, gave this comment to Sky News Online: “It just doesn't work for me, a bob certainly isn’t anything like a pound.”
In defense of the ad’s language, a McDonald’s spokesman said: “Although a ‘bob’ was formerly used as a slang term for the shilling until the introduction of decimalisation in 1971, research has shown it is now more commonly used as slang for a pound or money in general.”
Read the full story in Sky News Online now! (http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Business/McDonalds-Criticised-For-Pound-Saver-Advert-Which-Describes-One-Pound-As-One-Bob/Article/201001415534209?lpos=Business_Second_UK_News_Article_Teaser_Region_3&lid=ARTICLE_15534209_McDonalds_Criticised_For_Pound_Saver_Advert_Which_Describes_One_Pound_As_One_Bob)