Skittles and Hoda Kotb: 'Racial Injustice'

When it comes to Skittles and Trayvon Martin, I'm reminded of Jeffrey Dahmer and A.1. Steak Sauce.

A brand product is in the spotlight in a case consuming Americans.

Granted, the Dahmer-A.1. connection is significantly different from Martin and Skittles. Dahmer used the condiment in a manner that was not exactly appetizing.

Nonetheless, Skittles has been thrust into the racial drama gripping the nation. The brand name is being bandied about in the context of a killing.

Hoda Kotb, filling in for Matt Lauer on Today, said that Skittles are a "symbol of racial injustice."

I kid you not.

Is Skittles an NBC sponsor? If it is, that probably will change.

Video, from NewsBusters:



Here's the transcript:

HODA KOTB: Skittles obviously has become really kind of a symbol in the whole Trayvon Martin case. A symbol of racial injustice. You see people holding up the bags of Skittles in their hands and it clearly means something. Now let's take it from Skittles' point of view. How do you look at this? How do you see it?

DONNY DEUTSCH: If you're Skittles point of view, you put your head down and you wait for it to go away. The worst thing that they could do is some people go, "Oh, they should get involved and donate to charity and become..." – you don't want to do it for two reasons. Number one, you keep getting associated with this horrific incident. Number two, you could look exploitive. This happens to brands, but I promise you they will do nothing. Just let Mr. Skittles – let it pass.

KOTB: Let me ask you this, let's pretend a story comes up tomorrow that says Skittles profits have gone up 10% because of this Trayvon Martin case. In that case, what should Skittles do?

DEUTSCH: Exactly the same thing. Put your head down, let it pass. Because you don't want good attention – what does that say? That all – what are you going to do with that, start marketing to potential killers? What are you going to do? I mean, it's just – there's nothing to do with it.

KOTB: But does it look like you're sort of banking on this kind of thing? And should you take that 10% and say, "We're going to give all the profits we got to this cause"?

DEUTSCH: You know, that – even then, I think that looks exploitive.

Give profit increases to "the cause"?

Oh, good grief!

Completely ridiculous.