On March 19, Appeton Hi-Q Philippines posted an ad for the children’s supplement. The most prominent words on the ad were “Bakit maraming bobo?” Translation: “Why are there many dumb people?”
The ad then had the standard product shot poster alongside an infographic that showed the the IQ ranking of Southeast Asian Nations.
The infographic indicated that the Philippines, which was ranked No. 10, was supposedly the nation with the lowest IQ of 86. This was a reference to the findings from the paper done by Prof. Richard Lynn of the University of Ulster in Northern Ireland. Lynn’s paper, titled “Intelligence and the Wealth and Poverty of Nations,” has already gotten quite a reaction from Filipinos back in 2014, when the ASEAN DNA Facebook page cited in for their own infographic.
Now, four years later, Appeton Hi-Q Philippines once again riled up some netizens further by adding its controversial questions. As of 5:30 p.m. on Friday, March 23, Appeton Hi-Q Philippines’ post has been shared over 300 times. It has also gotten over 400 comments — many of which called out the Facebook page for the “offensive” ad.
If Appeton Hi-Q Philippines was hoping to increase their social media engagement then they’ve succeeded. But it remains to be seen if they’re going to be happy with the results of their campaign.
