Pepsi Co. has pulled the now notorious Kendall Jenner protest ad after it was criticized for trivializing Black Lives Matter and police brutality.
Pepsi apologized in general and to the model herself for the controversy, saying the ad missed the mark, and insisting the company was trying to create a “global message of unity, peace and understanding.” Where do you come down on Pepsi’s decision and apology? Should Kendall be the one to apologize? Was Pepsi right to pull the ad? You can weigh in on Heavy’s polls at the end of this post.
Some weren’t buying it.
The Kendall Jenner Pepsi fiasco is a perfect example of what happens when there’s no black people in the room when decisions are being made.
— Travon Free (@Travon) April 4, 2017
Many felt the ad offensively appropriated protester Ieshia Evans’ defiance in Baton Rouge:
The latter apology (from Pepsi TO Kendall), especially, has Twitter divided, with some saying Jenner owes the apology too because she earned a paycheck for the ad, signed on for it, and is an adult. Why, goes this line of thought, is Pepsi apologizing to Jenner? Where’s her apology, some say.
It’s incredible that @pepsi apologized to Kendall. She chose to be a part of that ad. Pepsi needs to apologize to the protestors.
— deray mckesson (@deray) April 5, 2017
@DanaSchwartzzz Kendall Jenner is an adult worth $18M.she has been declared a”super” model.she is not a child & could have said no to the ad
— Kokoa (@kokoa96) April 5, 2017
Others thought it was Pepsi’s fault, not Kendall’s.
@NBCNews Not @KendallJenner fault. She is young & it was a big opportunity, she may not have known the full script. Lets not judge so fast.
— Jo Ann (@jozzdays) April 5, 2017
Some people thought people should talk about more important things: Like Syria.
Can everyone stop talking about Kendall Jenner and start talking about more important things like what is happening in Syria right now
— Minnie ♡ (@vintageboyhes) April 5, 2017
According to NBC News, critics accuse Pepsi of “appropriating a nationwide protest movement following police shootings of African Americans.” Prominent activists have criticized the ad as tone deaf, offensive and insensitive. Among them: Bernice King, the daughter of slain Civil Rights leader, Martin Luther King Jr.
In the ad, which Pepsi released Tuesday, “Jenner is in the middle of a photo shoot when she happens to notice a protest march making its way down the street,” reported NBC News. She joins the protest, and hands a police officer a Pepsi, causing the crowd to cheer. Some critics of the ad argued that the ad misstates the protest and Black Lives Matter reality, where a can of soda doesn’t do anything to help extremely serious matters that a privileged model like Kendall Jenner can’t understand.
Others offered a different position.
Just watched the Kendall Jenner Pepsi commercial. Someone explain the outrage cause I thought the message was pretty clear…
— Karel Agborambang (@Karel_A9) April 5, 2017
Now people in my class are defending Kendall Jenner’s Pepsi commercial. A room of counselors, teachers, and social workers.
— Lauren Yates (@laurentyates) April 5, 2017
Was Pepsi right to pull the ad? Take the first poll:
Was Pepsi right to apologize TO Kendall Jenner? Or should Kendall apologize too?
Watch the Kendall ad here:
WATCH: Kendall Jenner Models, Joins Protest In Controversial Pepsi Ad
A commercial by Pepsi features Kendall Jenner modeling and joining a protest before making peace with police officers with a can of soda. Watch the full video.
Jessica McBride is a Heavy contributor. She was a crime, government, and breaking news reporter for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and reporter for the Waukesha Freeman newspaper. Her award-winning work has appeared in numerous magazine, newspaper, and online publications. She has also appeared as a crime reporter on Investigation Discovery Channel, History Channel, and Oxygen Channel. She can be reached by email at jessica.mcbride@heavy.com.April 5, 2017 8:04 pm
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