Iron Chef America Secretly Lovin' It

By Laura Oppenheimer in Arts & Entertainment on Jan 26, 2007 8:45PM

If watching Homaro Cantu make maki made you want to eat a Big Mac on Sunday night, you aren't alone. The Food Network's "Iron Chef America" and Oakbrook-based McDonald's are catching some heat after a McDonald's logo and the phrase "I'm Lovin' It" appeared for a split second during the show.

What's the story? Is The Food Network going all "Saved By the Bell" on viewers? Not so fast, says Food Network spokesman Mark O'Connor, who explained, "It was a technical error on our part and not a subliminal message as suggested by a Web site running the slow-motion playback." McDonald's spokesman Bill Whitman concurred, saying "We don't do subliminal advertising."

We don't work in TV, so maybe we don't understand — how would one frame accidentally be shown? Kottke provides two possible answers. The first possibility is the very obvious "it wasn't an accident" excuse. Sweet. We love a good conspiracy here at Chicagoist. The second possibility, which was suggested by Michael Buffington, is that a local market cable ad was dropped onto the national feed. We aren't sure what that means, but it sounds decidedly less sinister. Thoughts?