It's a McDonalds Morning - Product Placement on the News

Avid TV viewers are no stranger to product placement on their favorite shows - especially reality TV fans, who encounter the Bluefly accessories wall (Project Runway), a caravan of Ford Escapes (The Biggest Loser) or the ever-present Coca-Cola cup (American Idol).

But what about during your local news?

For the past few weeks, KVVU, a Fox affiliate out of Las Vegas, has featured morning news anchors with cups of McDonald's iced coffee on their desks as they report local happenings. This 6-month partnership is intended to drum up additional advertising revenue for the station.

The station promises that they will continue to truthfully represent news items - including items that may negatively reflect on McDonald's practices or products. Additionally, if a negative story did occur, it's likely that the cups would be removed from the set.

KVVU is owned by Meredith Corporation, who is actively seeking out product placement opportunities on other morning shows in Atlanta and Hartford, Conn. McDonald's also has product placement deals with several other news networks around the country.

The three major network morning shows, ABC’s “Good Morning America,” CBS’s “The Early Show,” and NBC’s “Today” do not endorse or participate in product placement deals, citing company ethics.

Image via Fox 5