Sharon Stone's Karma Remarks

Since Sharon Stone suggested the Chinese earthquake was "bad karma" for Beijing's policies in Tibet last Thursday, many marketers has been busy doing damage control.

Sharon Stone is well-known in China. In a red-carpet interview at the Cannes Film Festival on May 22nd, she said "I'm not happy about the way the Chinese are treating the Tibetans because I don't think anyone should be unkind to anyone else," Stone said. "I've been concerned about how should we deal with the Olympics, because they are not being nice to the Dalai Lama, who is a good friend of mine. And then this earthquake and all this stuff happened, and then I thought, is that karma? When you're not nice that the bad things happen to you?"

The actress’s comment sparked a swell of anger and a storm of criticism in China and beyond. Chinese bloggers suggested boycott everything related to her. They demanded apology for the sake of the 67,000 Chinese killed at the quake.

So did Sharon Stone. She said in her statement, "Due to my inappropriate words and acts during the interview, I feel deeply sorry and sad about hurting Chinese people," Stone said in the statement. "I am willing to take part in the relief work of China's earthquake, and wholly devote myself to helping affected Chinese people."

But the damage was made. Luxury retailer Christian Dior -- which uses Stone extensively in its advertisements -- had distanced itself from her remarks. It pulled all advertisements featuring the actress from stores across China and released a statement, “We absolutely disagree with her hasty comments and we are also deeply sorry about them.” It is very unlikely that Stone would ever reappear in the company's advertisements in China.

According to the Web-based database imdb.com, Stone has at least four movies coming up between now and 2010, including “Streets of Blood,” “Five Dollars a Day” and “The Year of Getting to Know Us.” But Cinema chains in China had already said they would not show her films.

One remark kills all. Celebrities and marketers should know better: Be sensitive to your audience, regardless it is Asian markets or not. Notice that the Chinese government had press conference AFTER Stone’s apology saying actresses should promote friendship between people. There are matters that marketers should just avoid.