From Saturday’s New York Times:

Vitriol Online for Cheerios Ad With Interracial Family

The Cheerios spot shows a young girl asking her mother if the cereal is “good for your heart.” Her mother assures her that is so. The girl runs away with a cereal box, and in the next scene, the girl’s sleeping father awakes with a pile of Cheerios atop the side of his chest where his heart is.

The commercial ends with the word “Love” on screen.

The spot, heartwarming to many, began on national television on Monday and was uploaded to YouTube on Wednesday. But it has caused a furor for the maker of Cheerios, General Mills, because an interracial cast portrays the family.

The advertisement, which features a black father and white mother, has generated vituperative comments online, but General Mills says it stands by the commercial.