Pasta row in Italy after Barilla's president anti-gay remarks

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I'm in a same-sex relationship, but I can't honestly say I'd boycott a food product I liked over an opinion held by a clueless CEO or director. There's probably plenty of people in employment there who don't share his values, who are likely to come off worse from a boycott than the ones who made the comments.

Yeah, he's a sexist, homophobic man, but I'm not eating meals with the guy.

Having said that, I eat Dolmio stuff anyway.
 
Have to be honest stuff like this doesn't move me in any way shape or form. I will still buy the pasta. There's probably a dozen other things I disagree with this guy about as well but it doesn't matter. If he makes a good product and he is not hurting anyone I will continue to buy it.
 
Sickboy007 said:
You do know that this is about spots airing in Italy, right? We don't need anyone selling the Italian stereotype to us. Does this mean they shouldn't use people of different races in their spots because Italy is predominantly white?
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Okay, so are the company going to release an advert that shows how efficient the the stainless steel factory machine that pumps out pasta is? How smooth the conveyor belt that moves it to the packaging section is?

No.

This is an Italian advert for Barilla pasta.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kscVd9I3VHI

Does it convey the same stereotypical elements that would be marketed internationally?

Yes

The old classic car, the attractive man and woman, the idyllic countryside, the rustic building...

Stereotypes work on a number of levels and they work at home and abroad.
 
dapperbandit said:
Okay, so are the company going to release an advert that shows how efficient the the stainless steel factory machine that pumps out pasta is? How smooth the conveyor belt that moves it to the packaging section is?

No.

This is an Italian advert for Barilla pasta.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kscVd9I3VHI

Does it convey the same stereotypical elements that would be marketed internationally?

Yes

The old classic car, the attractive man and woman, the idyllic countryside, the rustic building...

Stereotypes work on a number of levels and they work at home and abroad.
Click to expand...
I like the new ones featuring Antonio Banderas better.

Here's him eating bread with three other guys:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NjPAm_rORhA
 
Sickboy007 said:
Look at all those traditional family values:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXNCk5X0_Mw
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Lol amazing.

The guy's kinda right though, Barilla ads do usually give off that rustic, traditional vibe, just like the CEO said. I honestly see nothing wrong with him wanting his brand to be associated with that sort of image.

There are many, many politicians sitting in the Italian parliament who actively oppose gay unions (which, again, do not exist in any shape or form in Italy), those are the people who should be targeted, not some guy making pasta and trying to sell it to his target audience the best way he can. He's just running a business and he is in favour of same-sex unions anyway. Don't see what the big deal is about honestly. Sure, he's not challenging the status quo, it would be commendable if he did I guess.
 
Mt Heart Attack said:
Lol amazing.

The guy's kinda right though, Barilla ads do usually give off that rustic, traditional vibe, just like the CEO said. I honestly see nothing wrong with him wanting his brand to be associated with that sort of image.

There are many, many politicians sitting in the Italian parliament who actively oppose gay unions (which, again, do not exist in any shape or form in Italy), those are the people who should be targeted, not some guy making pasta and trying to sell it to his target audience the best way he can. He's just running a business and he is in favour of same-sex unions anyway. Don't see what the big deal is about honestly. Sure, he's not challenging the status quo, it would be commendable if he did I guess.
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It's not that he's not challenging the status quo, it's that he's come out and said he will never do a spot with a gay family because he doesn't agree with them (?), and if gay people don't like that they should buy another pasta. This, and the way he addressed women, are grounds enough to be hostile towards him imho.

I agree with your point about civil unions, but public perception is equally important, especially in a country drugged by television like Italy.
 
Mt Heart Attack said:
Lol amazing.

The guy's kinda right though, Barilla ads do usually give off that rustic, traditional vibe, just like the CEO said. I honestly see nothing wrong with him wanting his brand to be associated with that sort of image.

There are many, many politicians sitting in the Italian parliament who actively oppose gay unions (which, again, do not exist in any shape or form in Italy), those are the people who should be targeted, not some guy making pasta and trying to sell it to his target audience the best way he can. He's just running a business and he is in favour of same-sex unions anyway. Don't see what the big deal is about honestly. Sure, he's not challenging the status quo, it would be commendable if he did I guess.
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If all he said was "I support marriage equality," sure, fine. But he also said that gay people can't raise children, that their families arbitrarily aren't "sacred," and that women belong in the kitchen, so no.

Also, apparently, lesbians don't seem to exist!
 
I honestly don't see how it's a big problem. There's this guy, he sells pasta, and I don't agree with his opinion on family. Well, that's life. It's not like he's hurting anybody.
 
I missed the part about women I guess?

Anyway, I just think that this general outcry against him comes off a little hypocritical in a country like Italy where, as far as gay rights go, their lack of screen time in ads and the opinion of some CEO about them (who, reading his words and his references to "sacred values", probably comes from a Catholic background and has the right of believing in what he pleases, even if I couldn't be more in disagreement with that if I tried) are the least of the problems.

I certainly wouldn't go as far as boycotting his products (I like Gocciole too much anyway, wouldn't be able to do it in any case :p)

Boom Boom Pow said:
i'm so confused. he supports gay marriage though. and having them live their life.

this is...so strange
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Truth be told, he's probably not supporting it as much as not giving a damn about it, you know, just the way 90% of Italian feel on the matter (or well, anything else xD).
 
Not saying I agree with him, but evidently most companies feel the same. Except for maybe JC Penny? A lot of people believe there's a distinction to be made between tolerance and "promotion". People would quickly charge Barilla with "promoting" a non-traditional lifestyle. Way too polarizing an issue to involve any brand in, honestly. He didn't need to say it, though.

soundscream said:
If he said he would never make a commercial with an interracial couple because he felt everyone should stick to there own I would feel the same way.
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The two aren't analogous. *disclaimer* I'm not saying I agree, but many people sincerely believe homosexuality is a choice. Even if that were true, would that make it any less valid? No. I'm just saying.
 
Ludicrous Speed said:
So which pasta is for the gay families? Need to know
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Well, Buitoni and Garofalo already seized the opportunity and said that "their homes are open to any families".

This already degenerated in a political scuffle, literally. A member of a leftist party and gay rights activist was speaking about this in Parliament when a Lega Nord member placed on his desk a fennel (finocchio in italian, slang for faggot). Another member of the leftist party asked the House to remove it and he was assaulted by the Lega Nord member.
 
breakfuss said:
The two aren't analogous. *disclaimer* I'm not saying I agree, but many people sincerely believe homosexuality is a choice. Even if that were true, would that make it any less valid? No. I'm just saying.
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I sincerely believe that being of a skin color is a choice.
 
"Shan't be buying that pasta, the intolerance ruins the flavour. Now this other brand, this tastes much more liberal!"

Henry Ford vehemently hated Jews. So did Walt Disney.

Tommy Hilfiger doesn't like black people. Orson Scott Card doesn't like gay people.

That doesn't stop me buying the cars, watching the movies, wearing the clothes and reading the books.

I don't particularly care what a person thinks I care what they make. Mel Gibson can continue to insult pretty much everyone, I'll still watch his films.

Boycotting a product because the guy at the top says something you don't agree with seems melodramatic and pedantic to me. But it's not at the top of my concerns either since it's not like I'm invested in a pasta company anyway.
 
So I have Barilla pasta that I use regularly. Now, I'm not planning to boycott or anything, mind, but you guys say that there are better brands? What's one of the best I can get?
 
dapperbandit said:
Boycotting a product because the guy at the top says something you don't agree with seems melodramatic and pedantic to me. But it's not at the top of my concerns either since it's not like I'm invested in a pasta company anyway.
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There are only two ways to effect change in a community/society: 1) individual action and 2) collective action by many individuals.

The sexism and homophobia spoutted by the CEO of a company is allowed, hence it persists, because individuals fail to act. One is free to do as they please, but it would be nice to see the public react in a more collective way.
 
Shit! They make the best linguini. A fuck, now I need to find another brand, at least till he apologizes and embraces the gays.
 
Vermillion said:
So I have Barilla pasta that I use regularly. Now, I'm not planning to boycott or anything, mind, but you guys say that there are better brands? What's one of the best I can get?
Click to expand...

Buitoni and De Cecco are what I tend to see as options in most places. To be honest the best would probably just be in the cold section.
 
dapperbandit said:
Boycotting a product because the guy at the top says something you don't agree with seems melodramatic and pedantic to me. But it's not at the top of my concerns either since it's not like I'm invested in a pasta company anyway.
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Wait, didn't you just make a bunch of posts in this thread saying that marketing is important and it works, and you can see why they would go for the 'traditional family route'?

The owner of a company (or the director of a film, or the author of a book) making a controversial public statement about something is as good and loud as any marketing saying the same thing, and this type of thing is often a PR nightmare.

Honestly, does it matter whether or not the quality of the product is directly affected by something like a bigot CEO or something? People base their purchasing decisions on many factors that have nothing to do with what the actual product is. So I think this factor is just as valid.
 
Sickboy007 said:
Well, Buitoni and Garofalo already seized the opportunity and said that "their homes are open to any families".

This already degenerated in a political scuffle, literally. A member of a leftist party and gay rights activist was speaking about this in Parliament when a Lega Nord member placed on his desk a fennel (finocchio in italian, slang for faggot). Another member of the leftist party asked the House to remove it and he was assaulted by the Lega Nord member.
Click to expand...

Yeah this has got way too political and my dinner got heated today (me vs parents because television obviously twisted it in a "omg gay oppressing poor straight people who can't even express their opinion, and in a sense they were right but how obnoxious can this shit get).
The dude's an old man in a country where most would swear against gay adoptions anyway, i don't see what the outrage is about, it's not like he's a politician elected for his view, he could as well be my grandmother.
It look otrageous to many, but morality is still largely relative (we got far more rights for working pregnant women than the US, and we abolished the death penalty around 1400 here in Tuscany, 2013 and the US still got the death penalty ok), and while Italy may not be the middle-east, we're nowhere as progressive as most of europe and we have the Vatican with probably the biggest percent of christian/catholics in the west.
People getting outraged about this just polarize opinions and the ones who are on the other side will just look at us like fanatics. This at least until the majority opinion shift (here in Italy? 10 years at least) , and then the "fanatic/bigots/racists" will be the ones in the minority.

The real disturbing thing is that this was picked up for a gay narrative and no one on the news even noted that this guy expressed extremely sexist views, like wow. I guess when you got Berlusconi as a PM women can't be seen as anything more than commodities .
 
Dark Octave said:
Yeah you guys are all about the protein am I right?
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balTwIH.gif
 
Barilla is over-rated anyways.

I tend to avoid pasta day to day, so if I do have some it's going to be handmade at a local Italian joint.
 
He supports gay marriage in a country where it is illegal, so how do you know the other pasta brands aren't worse?
 
Devolution said:
Buitoni and De Cecco are what I tend to see as options in most places. To be honest the best would probably just be in the cold section.
Click to expand...

Z5OVwor.jpg


This is my go to brand lately when I do spaghetti or fettucini.

I also really actually like the Kroger house brand pasta, they are really great value and I would buy them anyday over Barilla. Barilla is actually my least favorite supermarket pasta brand.

Most often I have Kroger's campanelle with a simple tomato and olive oil sauce. It's great and costs like $2.5 to make enough for like 5 people.
 
mavs said:
He supports gay marriage in a country where it is illegal, so how do you know the other pasta brands aren't worse?
Click to expand...

Civil unions are illegal too here. The Church still bring too many votes and Famiglia Cristiana (cristian family) is still one of the most if not the most sold weekspaper here, and those are still pushing the "traditional family" narrative. If it were for them, civil marriages would be illegal, while abortion and divorce are still object of debates because they degrade the morality of man. Coming on GAF after reading it is a surreal experience, kinda like meeting elves.
 
dapperbandit said:
"Shan't be buying that pasta, the intolerance ruins the flavour. Now this other brand, this tastes much more liberal!"

Henry Ford vehemently hated Jews. So did Walt Disney.

Tommy Hilfiger doesn't like black people. Orson Scott Card doesn't like gay people.

That doesn't stop me buying the cars, watching the movies, wearing the clothes and reading the books.

I don't particularly care what a person thinks I care what they make. Mel Gibson can continue to insult pretty much everyone, I'll still watch his films.

Boycotting a product because the guy at the top says something you don't agree with seems melodramatic and pedantic to me. But it's not at the top of my concerns either since it's not like I'm invested in a pasta company anyway.
Click to expand...

Let's just set the record straight on something: people' issue with Orson Scott Card are not just that he's a homophobe, it's that he's a homophobe that sits on one of the most homophobic organizations in the country, and donates thousands of his own personal fortune to anti-gay agendas.

This is less of an issue. Though, my Italian family loves their pasta. it's pretty great for cheap pasta.

G.ZZZ said:
Civil unions are illegal too here. The Church still bring too many votes and Famiglia Cristiana (cristian family) is still one of the most if not the most sold weekspaper here, and those are still pushing the "traditional family" narrative. If it were for them, civil marriages would be illegal, while abortion and divorce are still object of debates because they degrade the morality of man. Coming on GAF after reading it is a surreal experience, kinda like meeting elves.
Click to expand...

Good else, or bad elves? Or just Gay elves?
 
Android18a said:
I'm in a same-sex relationship, but I can't honestly say I'd boycott a food product I liked over an opinion held by a clueless CEO or director. There's probably plenty of people in employment there who don't share his values, who are likely to come off worse from a boycott than the ones who made the comments.

Yeah, he's a sexist, homophobic man, but I'm not eating meals with the guy.

Having said that, I eat Dolmio stuff anyway.
Click to expand...

Yep. I'm too busy to double-check every financial decision I make in life to make sure the CEO's values align with my own. If I'm not mistaken one of IKEA's founders supposedly had ties to the Nazis but most people don't mind buying their cheap dorm furniture. If you look deep enough you can probably find questionable morals or ethics at most companies. But as far as pasta goes, I always go for the cheapest stuff anyway as the taste comes from the sauce, not the raw pasta.
 
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