"Pepsi was
trying to project a global message of unity, peace and understanding. Clearly
we missed the mark, and we apologize. We did not intend to make light of any
serious issue. We are removing the content and halting any further
rollout. We also apologize for putting Kendall Jenner in this position."
-- Pepsi statement
on April 5, 2017
Last year, Pepsi
released a commercial featuring Kendall Jenner, a supermodel, who joined
protesters in a demonstration. This commercial raised controversy surrounding
how Pepsi showed no sensitivity towards social topics and had no idea what it
is like being on the front lines of protests these recent years.
"If the Black
Lives Matter movement were led by a 21-year-old white supermodel armed with a
can of fizzy soda, then maybe everyone would just get along." says NBC.
There is definitely
value for creating marketing content surrounding social topics. However there
is sensitivity towards every social topic and the risk of ignorance is very
high. Pepsi's ad had a well-crafted story with fancy filming skills and
inspiring background music. What's lacking was due diligence and the
understanding of what real demonstration is like - even if I've never been part
of any demonstration, I could see how the ads selectively dramatized the scene.
Here is a full clip of the ads, which was removed by Pepsi as the statement
said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dA5Yq1DLSmQ
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