My Publicist Note Book

In honor of Peace Day, September 21st, Burger King is inviting McDonald's to team up to create the McWhopper — a burger built for world peace. If they say yes, we’ll mark this ‘burger wars” ceasefire with a one day pop-up McWhopper shop in Atlanta on Peace Day, halfway between our two headquarters. Visit mcwhopper.com to learn more about our proposal and about Peace One Day , an organization focused on campaigning to make Peace Day, an annual day of global unity. Get involved at peaceoneday.org. McDonald’s Corporation has not yet authorized this usage or accepted this proposal. All mentions of “McDonald’s” are references to McDonald’s Corporation. Whopper is a registered trademark of Burger King Corporation. Sorry, Burger King: McDonald's just said no to your joint 'McWhopper' burger idea Burger King took out a full-page, open-letter-style ad in The New York Times and Chicago Tribune this morning,  calling for a truce with McDonald's and sugg...

Even the iconic McDonald's french fry, a linchpin to the fast-food giant's multibillion-dollar success, is getting a second look as the company seeks new product hits. On Thursday, the same day McDonald's announced that domestic sales were flat in April, the company confirmed that it will begin testing seasoned fries -- dubbed Shakin' Flavor Fries -- on Friday in the Northern California and St. Louis markets. The seasonings: Garlic Parmesan, Zesty Ranch and Spicy Buffalo. But here's the rub: You don't buy the fries pre-seasoned. Instead, they come with special packets of seasoning that consumers are advised to open, pour and shake into a specially made mixing bag. Imprinted on the bags: "Seasoned fries. Shake your taste buds." The concept, which debuted in some of its Hong Kong restaurants nearly a decade ago, where it's known as "Shake Shake," has since spread to many McDonald's locations in China, India and Australia, says ...