Latest news with #NancyAFrench
Fox News
05-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Viral photo of McDonald's PlayPlace prompts superfan to reveal fast-food chain's stray from nostalgia
A McDonald's in Franklin, Tennessee, attracted viral attention last month after a customer called out the children's play area and posted a photo on X. The photo showed a sitting area in the corner of the restaurant, with two screens embedded in the wall. X user @NancyAFrench posted an image of the PlayPlace, writing, "This is so heartbreaking. I'm at a new McDonald's in Franklin, TN, and look at their 'play place' for children. Two screens/two chairs." A McDonald's spokesperson told Fox News Digital that while this restaurant "has a few interactive features for younger guests, it does not represent the full PlayPlace design and experience." Gary He, author of "McAtlas," a visual social anthropology book about McDonald's, has traveled to McDonald's locations in over 55 countries across six continents. "[McDonald's restaurants] come in all shapes and sizes; some of them have massive PlayPlaces, but most of them have nothing at all," He told Fox News PlayPlaces, before the digital age, featured character-themed displays that were designed to attract kids and families. Some included playgrounds with ball pits. He said the methods of play at the fast-food restaurants reflect the way kids are being raised in a digital world. "Even the 'Largest Entertainment McDonald's' in Orlando, Florida, has modernized itself to include a large number of activities with screens," he said. In his travels, He said he's noticed that McDonald's locations serve as "a sort of cultural mirror." "In France, there are 'Ronald Gyms' attached to many standalone McDonald's and salad bars inside the restaurants, and China's McDonald's have exercise bikes that charge your phone, and [there are] hologram Ronald McDonalds in the PlayPlaces," said He. In Guatemala City, the Cajita Feliz restaurant is shaped like a Happy Meal box. The birthplace of Happy Meals was created by a McDonald's manager in Guatemala, who created a smaller, kid-friendly menu with a toy, calling it "Ronald's menu," according to Axios. "The [PlayPlace] is sprawling, but it's located inside a separate concrete building specifically for kids' birthday celebrations," said He. "We provide a top-notch experience for families with a delicious and nutritious menu, complemented by initiatives that encourage reading, play and overall well-being," reads the website of Latin American McDonald's operator Arcos Dorados. There are more than 38,000 McDonald's locations in 100 countries, according to the company's website. He said that in Taupo, New Zealand, there's a "decommissioned DC-3 airplane that kids and adults alike can run around and peer into the cockpit." "Here in the U.S., the vast majority of the company's business is drive-thru and delivery. It would seem that the restaurants are meeting the consumers where they are," said He. One location is dubbed the "UFO McDonald's" with a flying saucer-shaped dining room. Of all the McDonald's PlayPlaces in the U.S., there are two in particular that stand out in his view, he said. In Roswell, New Mexico, the location is dubbed the "UFO McDonald's" with a flying saucer-shaped dining room. There is also a play area that includes a tube slide, physical activities and space-themed characters. While the world's largest entertainment McDonald's in Orlando, Florida, may have screens, there are still many physical activities available for kids to dive into. There are "hundreds of feet of tube slides, a ball pit and every type of game that you could imagine," said He. "Though the store has been toned down in recent years, it still resembles an arcade more than a McDonald's."
Fox News
12-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
'Heartbreaking' photo of McDonald's PlayPlace triggers social media firestorm
A McDonald's in Franklin, Tennessee, is attracting viral attention after a customer called out the children's play area. X user @NancyAFrench posted an image of the PlayPlace," writing, "This is so heartbreaking. I'm at a new McDonalds in Franklin, TN and look at their 'play place' for children. Two screens/two chairs." The photo showed a corner of the restaurant with a sitting area and two screens embedded in the wall. "McDonald's and our franchisees are proud to provide family-friendly spaces across many of our U.S. restaurants," a McDonald's spokesperson told Fox News Digital. "While this restaurant has a few interactive features for younger guests, it does not represent the full PlayPlace design and experience," the spokesperson added. The X user added a video to her thread saying, "I went back in to make sure I didn't miss something." "There was this column thing that might be for getting kids to exercise. But I don't think this is temporary. I think this is it," she continued. The video shows the woman stomping on an interactive music pad along with a "playground safety rules" sign. The post garnered more than 16 million views and nearly 2,000 comments. This is so heart breaking. I'm at a new McDonalds in Franklin, TN and look at their "play place" for children. Two screens/two chairs. 😭😭😭 "I hope that's only temporary! We still have the play equipment at my local McD's," commented one X user. "Upsetting," another user wrote. "This is more of a punishment place," added another. A user reminisced, saying, "so many joys our kids will never know." "The playpits were filthy, and this screen thing is an abomination," declared one woman. "Nothing says childhood fun like staring at a screen in a slightly different location than home," another person wrote. I went back in to make sure I didn't miss something. There was this column thing that might be for getting kids to exercise. But I don't think this is temporary. I think this is it. One woman commented, "If kids won't pick up toys to play with anymore and demand screens - businesses provide what the consumer keeps asking for, repeatedly. The digital heroin conditioning." Other X users didn't appear to be fazed by the play area. "seems fine to me," one person commented. "McDonalds is not a childcare facility. They are there to eat," another user wrote. Children ages 8-12 spend four to six hours a day watching or using screens, while teens spend up to nine hours, according to the American Academy of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP). It is advised that children between the ages of 2 and 5 limit non-educational screen time to an hour per weekday and a maximum of three hours on weekends. For children 6 and over, the AACAP recommends encouraging "healthy habits and limit activities that include screens." Too much screen time can cause obesity, irregular sleep, behavioral problems and possible exposure to violent content, according to Mayo Clinic.
