A Canadian radio station is being heavily criticized for burning $5,000 in cash as part of a publicity stunt, Yahoo Shine reported.
Katie Summers and Ryan Lindsay, morning cohosts of AMP Radio Calgary, started a contest called "Bank It or Burn It," prompting listeners to decide whether the pile of cash should be awarded to a lucky listener or be set on fire.
Run by 90.3 AMP Radio in Calgary, the popular radio station was in for a surprise when the results came in.
Fifty-four percent of listeners responded via text in support of burning down the stack of bills, with the hashtag "#BURN". According to Yahoo Shine, left with no choice but to follow through, the radio cohosts set the $5,000 on fire.
"This city made a conscious decision, and we had to stick with what they said because that's what we said we were going to do," Lindsay told CTV News.
Going a step further, the contest is set to continue this week with listeners being requested to vote whether $10,000 should be burned or given away in the final round.
"I just wanted to let you know that you guys make me sick," one call-in listener declared on Monday, echoing the sentiment that has been mirrored by hundreds of angry Facebook commenters, Yahoo Shine reported.
"Disgrace. Absolute...disgrace, this makes me embarrassed to live in this city," wrote one critic. "I hope AMP literally burns for this. Words can't explain my disgust."
Slamming the creation of the contest itself, some listeners blamed the radio station. "Calgary voted?? Sorry that's not an argument considering the contest shouldn't have existed in the first place. AMP's fault."
However, Lindsay derided the critics for being hypocrites. He claimed that none of the listeners would have donated their cash if they had won the prize money.
"So many spend so much time b----ing and complaining, instead of voting," he said, "that this is the outcome."
Considering the outcry surrounding the first contest, it will be interesting to find out what the outcome of the final round vote on Friday will turn out to be.
