McDonald's new 'Signs' ad draw strong reactions, good and bad

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A new McDonald's ad that aired during the NFL playoffs and the Golden Globes awards show on Sunday (January 11th) has drawn strong reactions, both positive and negative, according to AP.

The ad is made up of a series of images of signs from outside McDonald's restaurants with messages expressing sentiments like thanks to veterans or birthday wishes to someone in the community, but also ones of support after difficult events, including two that said "We Remember 9/11" and "Boston Strong," a slogan from after the Boston Marathon bombings.

While the signs are shown, a children's choir is heard singing the song "Carry On" by Fun.

It's the more serious signs that have drawn the polarized reactions, with some people saying they were moved by the ad and others saying it was inappropriate and that McDonald's was exploiting tragic events to promote itself.

McDonald's USA chief marketing officer Deborah Wahl told AP that the ad was meant to reflect the company's history in communities through both good and bad times, saying that leaving out the bad would have been dishonest.