A new advert for a Chinese brand of clothing detergent has been called “the most racist advert ever”.

The YouTube video, which was uploaded on May 26, has now racked up over two million views. The 50-second ad features a woman, who encounters a black man covered in paint splatter, using her powers of seduction to lure the man into her washing machine. After she sits on the machine to let her new Qiaobi washing powder work its magic, the man emerges from the machine. But, now he is a Chinese man.

The subsequent coverage of the ad has been largely negative with many saying this is a prime example of prejudice towards black men. While some people have taken to social media to condemn the ad, there have been mixed reviews.

Many were quick to point out that this ad is almost an exact remake of an Italian advert which featured an white man emerging as a shirtless black man, to the laundry woman's delight. So the debate continues as to whether they are both racist, or neither of them are.

Well, they are certainly both awful.