In April 1998, five months before parliamentary elections, a new political force seemed to be emerging in Germany. As the main political parties competed for the public's attention by placing posters all across the major cities, a series of prominently positioned banners appeared on behalf of a “political party” known simply by its acronym BKD. The banners included such “slogans” as “Out with Diets!”, “Freedom, Equality, and Mealtime!”, and “It's Time for Change – BKD: The Genuine Alternative!”, and they directed viewers to the website of the party's campaign headquarters.

Those industrious enough to check the site found out that the party's full name was “Burger King für Deutschland” and that the campaign banners were actually a cleverly designed nationwide advertising initiative by the international fast-food giant Burger King in an attempt to gain ground on its perpetual rival McDonald's. The ensuing media coverage provided Burger King with a great deal of free publicity, and the humorous ad campaign was widely viewed as a great success. Over the following weeks and months, “the Whopper” emerged as the BKD's leading candidate, and Burger King continued to play the BKD theme until the elections took place in late September.

Of Burger King's many clever posters and banners, one in particular was most striking, both in its location and its (perhaps unintentional) revealing insight about East German society today.