The Pepsi Commercial that Caused Conversation
- May 5, 2017
- 1 min read
Pepsi has made a public apology for the controversial advertisement that borrowed imagery from the Black Lives Matter movement, after days of intense criticism from people who said it trivialized the widespread protests against the killings of black people by the police.
The ad was posted to YouTube, shows attractive young people holding signs with nonspecific pleas like “Join the conversation.” The protesters are uniformly smiling, laughing, clapping, hugging and high-fiving.
Criticism came after the ad was posted, commentators on social media accused Pepsi of appropriating imagery from serious protests to sell its product, while minimizing the danger protesters encounter and the frustration they feel.
In a statement, Pepsi at first said the ad, which was produced by an in-house studio, “captures the spirit and actions of those people that jump in to every moment.”
To many who saw the ad, it was a tone-deaf note. Bernice King, the daughter of Martin Luther King Jr. and Coretta Scott King, was among those who drew the connection to past protests.
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