The Pepsi commercial begins with different shots of a protest, along with glimpses of Kendal Jenner modeling in a blonde wig for a photo shoot nearby. The protest crowd is diverse and young with participants holding signs that read generalized call to actions such as "join the conversation". As the protest marches by Kendall and her shoot, she makes eye contact with a young man and he nods for her to join. She strips off her wig, wipes off her lipstick and joins the crowd. She then grabs a Pepsi from an ice bucket and heads toward a line of police officers. She hands the Pepsi to one of the officers and he accepts cracks it and takes a drink. Kendal and the crowd go crazy with excitement over what seems to be an accomplishment of unity. The ad finishes by flashing "Live Bolder", "Live Louder", "Live For Now" across the screen.
Pepsi's main agenda with the "Live for Now" ad was to promote the global message of peace, unity, and understanding. But due to harsh criticism, the ad was pulled by the company a day after distribution. Soon after Pepsi pulled the ad they released a few statements one reading "We did not intend to make light of any serious issue. We are pulling the content and halting any further rollout." So what exactly were viewers so upset about? I'm sure if you've watched the ad or seen any of the backlash on it you have an idea.
People were mad about the controversial Pepsi ad for more than one reason. The general reason being that the ad seemed to trivialize or down play the reality of protests, police brutality, and the seriousness of major ongoing issues. A lot of people were upset that a white woman was the face of the seemingly diverse protest/ad. Some even thought the brand was using major issues to gain capital. But none of these are the most controversial reason for the backlash. Many compared the frame of Kendall Jenner approaching the police officers to a popular photo of a black woman named Ieshia Evans who stood strong while confronting a charging line of police officers in riot gear during the protest against police brutality in Baton Rouge.
Ieshia Evans, Baton Rogue (2016). Jonathan Bachman/Reuters
The Pepsi advertisement, instead of reflecting the intended message, made it seem like that by drinking or holding a Pepsi, one could escape the victimization of police brutality or racism. Both Pepsi and Kendall Jenner have a platform and large influence in society. When you have such a great impact on the world you have to really think about the things you say especially in the public eye. I think Pepsi may have been blinded by their own positive agenda and did not consider what an outsider or people who are affected by these real world issues would think. If I had been the brand manager for Pepsi, I would have done a better job analyzing what all turnouts of the ad could have been.
Questions:
(1) Do you think Pepsi made a major oversight not predicting the outcome of the "Live For Now" ad?
(2) Do you think Pepsi had the right agenda/intentions when making the ad?
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