Pepsi Pulls Controversial Ad, Apologizes for ‘Putting Kendall Jenner In This Position’
Pepsi has removed the horrible Kendall Jenner ad after Black Twitter ethered it to oblivion on social media.
Although the soda giant removed the cringeworthy ad, if you do a deep search online, you can still watch the commercial in all of its tone-deaf glory. So nothing really ever goes away on the internet.
For those who haven’t seen it, the ad stars Kendall Jenner playing an angelic model who floats through a social protest, hands a police officer a can of cola and everyone cheers as if years of racial oppression and police brutality have magically disappeared. If it was only that easy.
Pepsi removed the ad on Wednesday (April 5) after the social media outrage. Critics accused the soda giant of appropriating a nationwide protest movement against police violence targeting African-American men and women.
"Pepsi was trying to project a global message of unity, peace and understanding. Clearly we missed the mark, and we apologize," wrote Pepsi in a statement (via NBC News). "We did not intend to make light of any serious issue. We are removing the content and halting any further rollout. We also apologize for putting Kendall Jenner in this position."
Hopefully, Pepsi understands now that you can't dismiss America's social problems with a cheery Pepsi ad. Chalk up a victory for Black Twitter.