Blog

Huge journalistic error puts Chick-fil-A in the hot seat

A news story posted nearly a year ago about a Chick-fil-A's employees donning "Back the Blue" T-shirts stated that the shirts were in support of police and the city's local high school football team, but other sites have picked up the story this week and are reporting that the shirts are solely in support of "Blue Lives Matter."

July 11, 2016 by S.A. Whitehead — Food Editor, Net World Media Group

A cautionary tale for all brands this morning comes from today's lightning fast news environment where everything stays in a perpetual state of breaking news on the web. This time, the confusion has Chick-fil-A squarely in its target. A news story posted nearly a year ago on Blaze.com about a Houston Chick-fil-A's employees donning "Back the Blue" T-shirts stated that the shirts were in support of the "Blue Lives Matter" movement and the city's local high school football team, but other sites have picked up the story this week and are reporting that the shirts are solely in support of "Blue Lives Matter." After the slaying of two black men at the hands of police and five police officers at the hands of a black man, it was all the fuel needed to set the web afire again.

Either way, no matter what you hear, the truth from Chick-fil-A's marketing representatives is this:

This is "something that occurred last year," wrote Anne Lerner of the company's public relations firm, Jackson Spalding.

"During high school football season last year, one locally owned restaurant in Houston, Texas created T-shirts for the sole reason of supporting its local football team. However, when asked, the local manager also made a statement in support of the local first responders, as we have a history of honoring them for their public service. 

"The shirts have nothing to do with the current national discussion. Chick-fil-A restaurants are committed to serving everyone delicious food while creating a welcoming environment for anyone who walks through our doors. Thank you for reaching out to get clarity."

We're following up with Chick-fil-A to determine exactly what occurred and will report back as we obtain further information.  

About S.A. Whitehead

---

Pizza Marketplace and QSRweb editor Shelly Whitehead is a former newspaper and TV reporter with an affinity for telling stories about the people and innovative thinking behind great brands.