Columns, Opinion

FRILOT: Shame on you, Pepsi

What do Sean Spicer, United Airlines and Pepsi all have in common? Unless you have completely isolated yourself from the internet this week, every social media platform has been spinning off of these breaking news stories, each displaying the monumental absurdities that have resulted in massive backlash. First, in the world of entertainment and media, Pepsi’s latest commercial has taken center stage. The internet has been running rampant chastising Pepsi for their absurdly insensitive and simply out of whack advertisement. The lengthy commercial features the infamous Kendall Jenner distracted by a nonspecific, extremely idealized demonstration marching by as she is in the middle of a photo shoot. Her eyes follow the meek parade flaunting signs displaying the inordinately ambiguous slogan “Join the Conversation,” whatever that means. Jenner, swayed by the charisma of the political-esque movement, shocks viewers as she whips off her wig and jogs to join the crusade. It doesn’t end there though, as the commercial continues to make a mockery of our current political climate when the police come into the shot, seemingly there to break up the peaceful demonstration. Jenner proceeds to approach a Caucasian officer and offer him a can of Pepsi. He accepts and shows his appreciation for the gesture by flashing a kind smile. The crowd goes wild and progresses to all live happily ever after, I presume.

First off, it is important to recognize how the commercial really is trying to stay relevant. Not only does it mimic an edgy, controversial topic that is certainly very prevalent currently, it also manages to successfully and cleverly give into both sides of our polarized political climate. Involving the march, however vague, grabs the attention of the liberals of the country and including law enforcement appeases more conservative viewers. Not favoring one side over the other is an extremely successful advertising technique, although it may come across as taking the easy way out or cheating viewers into thinking they are the favored ones.

Another clear effort Pepsi employs in an attempt to achieve relevance is the use of one of the most recognized celebrities of this time: a Jenner. This is an obvious publicity feat on Pepsi’s part, but it may be unclear why Jenner would take such a wishy-washy gig. However, looking at the breakdown of this Pepsi ad’s audience, Jenner’s reasons become clear. This ad has gotten a lot more views than most other Pepsi ads due to its controversy. On Kylie and Kendall Jenner’s YouTube channel, the ad has been played almost nine million times, compared to past Pepsi commercials that generally see a few hundred thousand views. Could it be possible that this whole thing was actually just a cleverly planned marketing stunt and just so happened to also be wildly insensitive? Many viewers would agree with this sentiment.

But how fair is that? Can we really accept that Pepsi was so content with taking advantage of the daily struggles of the many protesters demonstrating for actual causes and real injustices? Was it just another inappropriate commercial or are we permitted to be enraged?

After all, protests are rarely peace-grabs or wishful thinking. While protests can be peaceful, as the best and most effective ones are, in my opinion), they stem from real anger from real people fighting for real causes. Pepsi undermines that.

One of the most prominent, worldwide demonstrations currently is the Black Lives Matter movement. Unlike the frivolous and utterly fake “Join the Conversation” movement depicted in the Pepsi ad, this movement comes from a place of fiery outrage because people’s lives are being built and destructed without their say, advocating for freedom and justice for all black lives — a fundamental human right. Stemming from racially fueled police brutality, daily discrimination and straight up ugliness, this is real material. This is honesty and shamelessness and rage where people are fighting to have their voices heard because “joining the conversation” is easier when you are a white, rich, celebrated model.

Not to mention, some viewers are steaming due to how Jenner uncannily resembles the anti-Vietnam War campaign where a little girl offers a riot officer a flower, paralleling Jenner’s offering of a soda to the officer in the commercial. On top of that, Jenner has not explicitly taken a political stance of any kind. She clearly avoids politics in every way she can, so it is interesting how she makes this her controversial, vague political debut. That being said, I don’t think it is appropriate to blame Jenner for getting involved. It is easy to lose sight of the fact that Jenner doesn’t make these decisions for herself. A celebrity of her immense influence and popularity has to be represented by a large team of public relations professionals. This commercial was not a mistake or a fluke. Every bit of it was maliciously planned and as a result, a severe disappointment.

Pepsi should be ashamed of capitalizing off of minority movements and ultimately making money off of injustice as if it is a joke.

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