Oops: Misprinted Cereal Box Number Sends Callers to Sex Hotline, Not Charity
- Posted on September 30, 2010 at 5:32pm by
Jonathon M. Seidl
- Print »
- Email »
NFL wide receiver Chad Ochocinco is known for his shocking statements and off-the-field antics. But the latest oh-my moment associated with the Cincinnati Bengal, and involving a cereal box, wasn’t planned — and it’s prompted some apologies.
This week, the receiver launched a new cereal, “OchocincO’s,” that featured a printed number on the box meant to send callers to the charity Feed The Children. One problem: the number connects callers to a seductive voice asking for a credit card number and offering phone sex.
PLB Sports, which specializes in athlete-themed merchandise featuring their favorite charities, helped organize the cereal’s production and apologized for the error in a statement Thursday:
Pittsburgh based PLB Sports would like to apologize for the printing of the incorrect Feed The Children toll free number on Ochocinco’s Cereal boxes that are available in the Cincinnati market. PLB Sports Inc. will be immediately pulling the product from the Kroger shelves due to this mistake. The correct toll free number for Feed the Children is 1-888-HELP-FTC.
PLB Sports Inc. will be reprinting the Ochocinco’s cereal boxes with the correct toll free number.
Rosenhaus Sports, which represents Ochocinco, told The Cincinnati Enquirer that the charity gave the supplier the wrong phone number. The number originally included an 800 designation instead of an 888.
“You do have to admit it is kind of funny. When we dialed it for the second time, I sat there and thought ‘are you kidding me?’ Nobody has found this yet?” Sarah Sand told WCPO-TV in Cincinnati. Sand discovered the error when her 9-year-old daughter dialed the number.
The regional grocery store Kroger has pulled the cereal from its shelves and Ochocinco has apologized for the unintentional mistake.
“I take the blame and apologize to everyone affected,” he told reporters before Bengals practice Thursday. “It’s almost like it was supposed to happen.”
And while he reiterated that he is sincerely sorry for the mistake, he has his own theory as to how it happened: “It’s made in Pittsburgh,” he said jokingly. “It makes you think that somebody playing for the Steelers had something to do with it.”
Popular Stories
Paper Details Obama Admin’s Alleged Secret Note Sent to Iran: If Israel Attacks, We Won’t Get Involved 569 Comments
‘Made Up Religion’: TV Historian Enrages Muslims, Receives Threats After Producing UK Documentary Questioning Islam’s Beginnings 395 Comments
This Is the Creationists‘ Response to Scientist Bill Nye’s Viral Pro-Evolution Video Claiming They Harm Children 386 Comments
Roseanne Barr: Most Billionaires ‘Violent Pedophiles’ & ‘Heartless’ Cocaine Addicts 368 Comments
President Obama Issues Major ‘Green Energy’ Executive Order 328 Comments
Faith
- This Is the Creationists‘ Response to Scientist Bill Nye’s Viral Pro-Evolution Video Claiming They Harm Children 386 Comments
Pakistani Muslim Cleric Accused of Framing Disabled Christian Girl in Koran-Burning Case Read More- ‘Made Up Religion’: TV Historian Enrages Muslims, Receives Threats After Producing UK Documentary Questioning Islam’s Beginnings 395 Comments
Meet the Controversial German Imam Accused of Brutally Beating His Wife & Pushing Sharia Law Read More
‘Self-Proclaimed Messiah’ & Unification Church Leader the Rev. Sun Myung Moon Has Died — Here’s His Life Story Read More
Business
- President Obama Issues Major ‘Green Energy’ Executive Order 328 Comments
- Germany’s Upcoming Court Ruling Will be Huge for the EU Read More
Ford Looks to Beat Toyota for Best-Selling Car in 2012 With This Model 150 Comments
Bernanke & QE3: Here’s What You Need to Know Read More- ‘Extortion’: Why Did the Labor Department ‘Drop the Hammer’ on Oregon Farmers? 302 Comments
Technology
- This Is the Creationists‘ Response to Scientist Bill Nye’s Viral Pro-Evolution Video Claiming They Harm Children 386 Comments
‘TaserDrone’: Hackers Weaponize Quadcopter With Actual ‘Shocking’ Technology Read More
Ever Heard of the Wild ‘Burning Man’ Festival in the Middle of the Nev. Desert? Here’s Your Primer Read More
Stanford Develops Technology ‘Better Than Steroids’ for Athlete Recovery Read More
Have You Pretended to Know What ‘the Cloud’ Is? You’re Not Alone Read More
Submitting your tip... please wait!
Comments (32)
300wm
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 11:19pmWow, all I ever got in a cereal box was a crummy little toy. Kids now-a-days!!!
Report Post »zman173rd
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 10:56pmwhatchoo on eliasim?
Report Post »Eliasim
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 10:23pmDo this: vote, and then plaster your homes, and stomping grounds with the light, and peace.
Report Post »Eliasim
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 10:20pmOne-third of people will become bitter, and then some.
Report Post »Eliasim
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 10:19pmOne-Third of people will become extremely bitter, and even another portion of people.
Report Post »Eliasim
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 10:15pmThere is just a lot of evil people who are coming out of the closet now, and doing bad things.
Report Post »free2bme1961
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 10:12pmThere are no coincidences….everything happens for one reason or another….sometimes it takes awhile for the message to be clear.
Report Post »Dustyluv
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 9:49pmOchocinco will put the number on his football jersey in Spanish as an apology…
Report Post »Larry Sheldon
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 9:41pmAm I cynical, confused, or what? This “…. mixed up with a sex line” thing seems to happen more than the odds would seem to explain.
Report Post »cjbreisch
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 8:44pmThis may be an urban legend, but I seem to recall GM going through the same thing in the early nineties.
They supposedly created a hotline for their GMC trucks 1-800-GMC-TRUCK (yes, I know that’s one too many digits, but the last gets ignored–this is a common thing). And they included the number in the glovebox manuals.
But the number they put in was 1-800-GM-TRUCK, which happens to be the same as 1-800-HOT-SUCK.
Oops.
In an interesting aside, when I was in college, there was a local pizza place which had the phone number 743-3825, which is 743-FU…well, you get the idea.
Report Post »MCGIRV
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 8:33pmThats a big oops!
Report Post »SnapTie
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 7:46pmBet you the business picks up now that everyone knows the number. Misguided capitalistic Americans. Gotta Love them.
Report Post »flamedone1968
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 7:40pmCharity for the prostitutes… OK LOL
Report Post »OzillaryForPresident
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 7:18pmWhat was THAT phone number AGAIN !!!
Report Post »Okpulot Taha
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 7:03pmAny of you ever call a phone sex line? Highly entertaining! I have such a talent with words those girls on the other end are tongue tied within minutes. Shoot, I talked so nasty to one of those girls, she became exasperated and sternly said, “That’s disgusting!” Then she hung up on me.
I suppose she doesn’t like big handsome stallions.
Okpulot Taha
Report Post »Choctaw Nation
Jsor2112
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 7:02pmSame thing happened whan I worked in customer service for Voicestream cellular. 800 instead of 888 and the last digits were “STREAM” I’ll let you imagine the complaints we got.
Report Post »FreedomOfSpeech
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 6:52pmHa! I love it when this stuff happens.
Report Post »BetterDays
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 6:10pmHere we go Steelers, here we go!
Report Post »wingedwolf
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 6:05pm867-5309 jenny
Report Post »Waiting4George
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 6:15pmgreat. Like that tne won’t be in my head for the next 4 hours….
Report Post »americaneagle
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 6:04pmI learned early on as a web developer to always call your phone numbers before you go live. It’s REALLY important in print, but in the end the charity probably will get more exposure then they would have without the mistake.
Report Post »RugDog
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 5:53pmI wonder how many other phone numbers you could “accidentally” put on cereal boxes?
(I’m a guitar player! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUSNDA7oWhA
Report Post »Waiting4George
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 5:52pmBoxes probably proof read by the union.
Report Post »“Hey, FTC ain’t a word. Well, helo don’t have no “p”. Uh..OK…
1-800-HELO-DOLL
RugDog
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 5:50pmWow, think of all the numbers you could “accidentally” put on cereal boxes!
(I’m a guitar player! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUSNDA7oWhA )
Report Post »Petire
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 5:44pmlol… fail
Report Post »untameable-kate
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 5:40pmand people say football players are dumb, he’ll sell 20 times as much now
Report Post »Rick-Kalifornication
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 6:48pm“It’s almost like it was supposed to happen.”
THAT, say’s it all.
Report Post »VegasGuy
Posted on September 30, 2010 at 6:50pmThey should have spelled “Honey” with an “r” while they were at it. :D
Report Post »