Mercedes-Benz was recently criticised by a portion of Chinese social media for an advertising that supposedly accentuated the model's slating eyes. According to a Bloomberg article, the advertising was initially released on the Mercedes-Benz Weibo account but was then withdrawn due to a heated discussion about western companies' representation of Asian-looking features.

Many social media users on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, pointed out how the commercial was seeking to showcase the Mercedes car's headlight by drawing a connection to the model's slanting eyes. "The female model's makeup resembled slanted eyes and sparked a heated debate among netizens, with many claiming that the makeup promotes Western prejudices about Asian people," according to a report in the state-run Global Times.

While the commercial has now been removed, many people have commented on how it makes a mountain out of a molehill.

This isn't the first time a company has been chastised online over allegedly racist advertising. Brands like Dolce & Gabbana, Hennes & Mauritz, and others have also been targeted in China by what some refer to as "consumer nationalism." Gucci was also called out for one of their advertisements, in which the model was said to be wearing unusual make-up.

Mercedes, too, received a lot of criticism in 2018 for an advertisement that used a statement from the Dalai Lama. While this was more of a political problem than a racist issue, the German company was forced to apologise at the time.

Companies are often unwilling to combat outrage among the public at large because China is an important market for brands across categories, and the possibility for big sales volumes implies that companies are reluctant to challenge outrage among the general public.

Rs300 cr to be invested by Bajaj in a new factory for electric vehicles in Pune

Auto driver sexually assaulted 10-year-old girl on the pretext of feeding chicken

Bollywood's Bhaijaan seen driving an auto