KFC and Oprah: A costly free meal

"Forget the beef," said Elizabeth Snead in the Los Angeles Times. "Where's the darn chicken?" A KFC outlet in New York City had to stop serving free Kentucky Grilled chicken dinners because it ran out when a huge crowd showed up after printable coupons were posted on Oprah Winfrey's website. But "reports of a riot—and '60s-style protests"—were "greatly exaggerated."

That's what happens "when you combine Queen of America Oprah Winfrey and the offer of a free meal at KFC," said Jeff Thomas in the San Jose Mercury News. Other KFC outlets also ran out of grilled chicken, but the restaurant chain is promising to make things right by offering angry coupon holders a rain check. Poor KFC—it just wanted to promote new, healthier fare.

Introducing non-fried chicken at Kentucky Fried Chicken was actually a bright idea, said DJ Drummond in Wizbang. But the "incredibly stupid mismanagement" of the Oprah promotion has made "a laughingstock of the once-proud chain of chicken restaurants." Underestimating the response was bad enough, but KFC could have contained the damage if it had owned up to its mistake immediately.

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