Corporations have midlife crises too. McDonald’s is reputedly dumping the McRib sandwich after 25 loyal years to chase after a younger, fitness conscious female market. So farewell, McRib, you boneless pressed porkwich. Hello slim sexy Asian salad!

Or is it possible that the “Save the McRib” petition is just a poorly disguised ploy to harvest gullible McRib lovers’ email addresses? Perhaps the site’s images of iPods and tattooed young people are an attempt to reposition the old porker as a hip, teen-savvy object of desire?

There’s a photo gallery on the McRib website where consumers can submit photos of themselves from their cell phones. Though I have to believe the fetching young people wearing McRib logo tees are paid models, Carl’s Jr has a similar web promotion, where seemingly real people submit unflattering photos of themselves on the Burger Slayer of the Month website.

Welcome to corporate food marketing aimed at the MySpace generation. I wonder if teens are buying this, or as on MySpace, if they can spot a balding, middle aged marketing man on the other end of the screen?