With rallies take up a majority of today’s news cycle, Pepsi’s commercial featuring Kendall Jenner has added to the discussion, but not in a positive way. The soft drink conglomerate has come under fire for its extremely controversial and trivialized portrayal of protesting. The advertisement shows artists and protesters dancing through the streets with signs calling for love and peace while Jenner happily strides through the crowd, Pepsi in hand.
It’s no secret that since the election of President Donald Trump, the amount and scale of protests throughout the country have skyrocketed, reaching and involving more people than ever before. While Pepsi is trying to tap into that market, they’re treating protesting as if it’s a trend. They’re capitalizing on people who are angry, who are using rallies and protesting as a way of spreading messages, to create a commercial without any true message. The ad’s protesters aren’t rallying behind one cause, as the signs are not only decorated in generic statements, but also written in different languages. Pepsi wanted to encompass all causes, all genders, all races — but wound up not even having a purpose. This isn’t even what a protest looks like. People who are committed to causes like Black Lives Matter, women’s rights or the importance of science aren’t parading through the streets with empowering background music and cheering police officers. They’re struggling and vying for any recognition.
While a celebrity endorsement is effective in some cases, Jenner was not the right influencer to choose. As a member of one of the wealthiest reality TV families in the world, Jenner represents white privilege. She’s not the right figure to be the star of a protest and hand a Pepsi to a police officer, eliciting cheers and hugs of celebration from fellow protesters. It wouldn’t be right to blame her for the problems inherent within this advertisement but she is adding to it. A rally is meant to represent minorities or those whose voices aren’t being heard. As a model, influencer and social media tycoon, Jenner certainly doesn’t fall into either of those categories. While her participation wouldn’t be unwelcome, to be frank, Jenner doesn’t have much to protest for.
Not only is the commercial offensive, but it also isn’t effective as an advertisement. Pepsi wanted to please everyone so badly that the entire commercial’s production made it very obviously fake. The beverage company clearly didn’t want to take a political stance, as the protest was essentially for nothing. It’s understandable to not want to upset any of your customers, but to not mention a single issue during a commercial centered on a protest doesn’t make any sense. The ad is not well made, does not have a message and seems too dramatized. Pepsi should’ve taken a stance rather than run the risk of generalization, even if it could offend demographics within their market.
It’s unclear if Pepsi was trying to create a political statement, due to the lack of an actual statement, or if they just wanted to advertise their soda with a pretty face in a swarm of energetic background faces. The commercial creates clear parallels to the Black Lives Matter movement, though we can’t assume Pepsi did this intentionally. The final scene of the photographer capturing the exact moment when Jenner hands a can to the police officer is almost a model picture of Ieshia Evans standing up to police forces during a demonstration to protest the wrongful death of Alton Sterling. The comparison seems like Pepsi is mocking this incredibly powerful image and moment for the protests in Baton Rouge. While it wouldn’t be fair to assume their intentions, we should also remember that advertisements require methodical editing and an enormous attention to detail. These creative decisions aren’t made lightly.
Pepsi either doesn’t understand what recent protests have meant to the people of this country or they simply missed the mark to address a sensitive topic. By seeing images of smiling faces and dance competitions in the middle of a protest, many believe that the company can’t possibly understand what a real rally is or what their purpose is. Pepsi is profiting off of trivializing the hardships and extremely emotional and impactful experiences of protesters. The idea of protests being a fad delegitimizes the millions of people who have felt compelled and empowered to participate, as does the involvement of Kendall Jenner.
