If you think that’s impossible, even in these thin-skinned, offence-taking times, you clearly didn’t reckon on the papery dermatitis of super-sensitive model Naomi Campbell. The object of her ire has to be described to be believed: a poster advert for a new Cadbury’s ‘dreamy chocolate truffle’.

‘Move over Naomi, there’s a new Diva in town’, runs the strapline. Underneath there is an image of the new, desperately deluxe chocolate bar luxuriating on top of a pile of diamonds. The background is Cadbury’s purple, the context spoilt and indulgent. At the bottom it reads: ‘I’m the world’s most pampered bar. Now in three NEW flavours.’ Provocative stuff indeed.

Now, I’m no expert on the semiotics of advertising, but I reckon that whoever came up with this little mesh of ironic signage wanted to do two things. They wanted to suggest that this chocolate bar was a cut above your bog-standard Dairy Milk, that it was valuable, perhaps even precious, and that you, Mr Customer, might like to spend some money on it. At the same time, in a market dominated by a surfeit of posh ‘137% Mayan Blood’ chocolate, they didn’t want the product to take itself too seriously so the preciousness of the chocolate bar was exaggerated to the point of ostentation. Now, given that ostentation is the mark of someone who thinks a little bit too much of themselves and isn’t afraid to show it, it’s not difficult to see how the idea of chocolate-as-diva entered the ad agency’s collective cerebellum. Cue the reference to Naomi Campbell.

Campbell, however, is not happy. ‘I am shocked. It’s upsetting to be described as chocolate, not just for me but for all black women and black people… It is insulting and hurtful.’ What Campbell seems intent on ignoring is that the element of Naomi Campbell that is important for the advert is not her skin pigment, but her notorious strops-and-diamonds diva-ness. Unperturbed by such petty distinctions, Valerie Morris, Campbell’s mother, preferred to concentrate on the skin pigment: ‘I am deeply upset by this racist advert.’

So there you have it: the advert is racist. Campbell says so. Even her mother says so. And it seems that is enough for the ad to be treated as actually racist: Cadbury’s has now withdrawn the advert.

All of which is not only a violation of free expression, it is completely absurd. Whatever you think about the concept behind the advert, it was – and I’m pretty sure about this – an attempt to sell as much chocolate to as many people as possible. Quite how ‘foment a race war’ fits into Cadbury’s commercial strategy is unclear. Is the white-supremacist pound really so valuable that a chocolate company would be willing to forgo the custom of non-racists?

Naomi Campbell for GQIn 2010, Naomi Campbell faced a fair amount of scrutiny after she initially refused to testify in the war crimes tribunal against former Liberian president Charles Taylor. The supermodel had, according to actress Mia Farrow, received a large, uncut diamond as a gift from the warlord—an incident Campbell denied when she eventually gave her testimony.

In a new interview with British GQ (via Vogue UK), Campbell spoke frankly about the experience, insisting, "I was afraid for my own life and I was afraid for the life of my family."

"If you hear someone has killed thousands of people—of course I was afraid! One more person is not going to make a difference. People forgot that I was a witness and thought I was a defendant," Campbell said.

But Naomi didn't let the negative press get to her. "They tried to affect my work. They said the fashion industry shouldn't use me. But what had I done wrong? They don't want to hear about that good person. They want that controversy. It's just business. Scandal is what sells."

Naomi Campbell (Getty Images)Naomi Campbell has admitted she experimented with cocaine when she was in her 20s and had made it in the fashion industry, but she says the drug had a negative impact on her life.

Discussing her problems with substance abuse, she said in an interview with the UK edition of GQ magazine: “It rips you world apart. I never thought I was an alcoholic but it goes hand in hand with the drugs. Emotionally I was just gone. I was emotionally unattached to myself. 

“You just want to numb your pain. And I’ve got tons of stuff. Same as everybody else. I didn’t like the way I was. Drink and drugs are an allergy for me, and they don’t make me a better person.”

Naomi's mother Valerie raised her as a single parent from the age of 18 after her father walked out on them both when the catwalk legend was just two months old. She says she took cocaine when she was out partying and didn’t initially realize the damage it could cause.

She explained: “I was a party girl. I started quite late, 24. I was having fun. It wasn’t that I couldn’t get out of bed in the morning without it. It wasn’t a coping mechanism. It was a party thing and I didn’t realize how powerful it was, in a very wrong way. The fun comes with consequences, you are killing yourself … I was an active addict. But I could still function.”

The 40-year-old model was proud of herself when she stopped using cocaine and insists there is no shame in seeking help.

She said: “Recovery is a positive thing. There’s nothing to be ashamed of. When you know you need help, and seek help, you need that time to deal with it. Get used to that new discipline. Tell when you are ready to tell. There’s no shame. There are people who get out of that prison, like Eric Clapton. I wanted to know what it was -- that peace, that serenity. A lot of my friends didn’t want to hang out with me when I came back. That hurt.”

What better way to kick off New York Fashion Week than with a runway show featuring some of the most sought-after models in the industry? Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Campbell, Alessandra Ambrossio, Lily Donaldson, Karolina Kurkova, Coco Rocha and more will join 150 other top models to strut the catwalk for the massive Fashion’s Night Out runway show on September 7. The A-list models will show off the hottest fall trends under the stars circling the iconic Revson Fountain at Lincoln Center. And while tickets for this much-anticipated show are required, fashionistas everywhere can view it via a live webcast hosted by Vogue editors André Leon Talley and Hanneli Mustaparta on CBS.com. Be sure to check back for our all Fashion Week coverage starting next week!

Naomi Campbell (Photo Agency)After months of refusing to cooperate in the war crimes trial of former Liberian ruler Charles Taylor, supermodel Naomi Campbell finally testified at the Special Court for Sierra Leone in the Hague next week. Campbell was questioned about a blood diamond she had allegedly received as a gift from Taylor, telling the court that she only received a pouch of "dirty stones" from strange men in the middle of the night while staying at the home of Nelson Mandela.

Campbell's testimony directly contradicted that of actress Mia Farrow, who was present on the evening of the alleged gifting, as well as testimony given by Campbell's former agent, Carole White.

In a statement released Tuesday night, Campbell defended herself against implications of dishonesty in court, saying, "I've no motive here. Nothing to gain. I am a black woman who has and will always support good causes especially relating to Africa. I've never taken any of the jobs offered to me, over my 25 years as a model, from companies that were for apartheid in South Africa."

On Tuesday, Campbell's former agent insisted that Campbell knew the diamonds were a gift from Taylor, with whom she had allegedly flirted over dinner earlier that evening.

Taylor is accused of myriad war crimes during Sierra Leone's civil war, among them murder, rape, sexual slavery and the recruitment of child soldiers.

Mia Farrow took to the stand Monday in the war-crimes trial of former Liberian president Charles Taylor and disputed Naomi Campbell's sworn testimony from last week about whether so-called "blood diamonds" Campbell received as a gift more than a decade ago had come from Taylor.

Campbell, 40, admitted last week that she received uncut stones from two men in South Africa in 1997 but said she didn't know they were diamonds or that they were linked to Taylor.

Farrow, 65, said Monday that Campbell in fact boasted that the gift was from Taylor at a breakfast the next day as both women prepared for a charity event with Nelson Mandela, Britain's Telegraph reports.

"Naomi Campbell joined us and before she even sat down she recounted the events of the [previous] evening," the actress testified. "She said that in the night she had been awakened. Some men were knocking at her door. They were sent by Charles Taylor and they had given her a huge diamond. Naomi Campbell said they came from Charles Taylor."

Taylor, 62, is accused of supplying Sierra Leone insurgents with weapons in exchange for illegally mined diamonds. The alleged gift to Campbell is critical to the case being presented by United Nations prosecutors at the trial in the Netherlands. Taylor has denied owning or trading in any illegal diamonds.

Campbell had sought to avoid testifying in the trial, saying she feared for her safety, but was subpoenaed and forced to appear.

Naomi Campbell took the stand and admitted she received "blood diamonds" from Liberian dictator Charles Taylor back in 1997. The 40-year-old supermodel is one of the people currently testifying against Taylor at his trial at The Hague, Netherlands.

Naomi Campbell (Bauer Griffin)Naomi was subpoenaed to give evidence after actress Mia Farrow, who has also been called to trial, claimed the model told her she had received jewels as a personal gift from Taylor during a party held at former South African President Nelson Mandela's house in September 1997.

According to Mia’s previous allegations, Naomi “told us she had been awakened in the night by knocking at her door. She opened the door to find two or three men - I do not recall how many - who presented her with a large diamond which they said was from Charles Taylor".

During her testimony, Naomi stated she was given a pouch with some “dirty little pebbles” but denied receiving a "huge, uncut" diamond. She said: “The next morning at breakfast I told Ms Farrow and (her former agent Carol White) what had happened and one of the two said, ‘That's obviously Charles Taylor’, and I said, ‘I guess that was.’ ”

She continued: “There was no one else at the dinner who would have given diamonds as a gift.”

The 40-year-old model is now fearful of her safety after being ordered to give evidence against Taylor. She said: “I don't want anything to do with it. I care about the protection of my family. This is someone (Charles Taylor) that I read up on, on the internet, that's killed thousands of people allegedly and I don't want my family in danger in any way.”

Taylor has been on trial since 2008 for crimes against humanity, after a bloody campaign he waged in Sierra Leone between 1997 and 2001, during which time he is alleged to have been involved with 'blood diamonds'.

A 'blood diamond' - also called a 'hot' or 'war' diamond - is a jewel mined in a war zone and sold to aid warlord activity or invading forces' campaigns.

The trial continues.