Thanks, Pepsi, For That Lesson in Semiotics

All signs point to a really lame ad (get it?)

Don’t worry, this is not another hot take on that awful Pepsi ad.

If you don’t know what ad I’m referring to 1) congratulations on staying off your phone for a whole day, that’s really tough, and 2) here, watch it, so we’re on the same page:

And here’s a thorough discussion of how bad it is: How Pepsi Got It So Wrong: Unpacking One of the Most Reviled Ads in Recent Memory by Kristina Monllos at AdWeek.

And an excerpt from the story above explaining the criticism:

Criticism of the ad, created by Pepsi’s in-house team, Creators League Studio, isn’t focused on just one aspect. Many take issue with the use of Jenner, with the brand casting a rich, cis, able-bodied white woman as the hero of the people, as well as the way that it portrays protest as an upbeat social outing.

The ending of the ad, with Jenner handing a Pepsi to a police officer, also evoked comparisons to historical images of protest, like Reuters’ image of activist Ieshia Evans, and many were put off by what they saw as an “exploitative brand social activism” for the sake of capitalism.

Ok, now that we’re on the same page, it turns out this super lame advertisement is super useful in discussing a kind of heavy topic: semiotics.

Semiotics is the study of signs and their use. “Signs” here means not only things like stop signs or exit signs, but any word, object, sound, image, etc. that signifies something, that means something to us. For instance, the word “table,” if you read English, probably calls to mind a certain four-legged piece of furniture, albeit your own unique imagining of a table. But, if you think about it, the little shapes we call letters in that particular combination don’t really mean anything; we English speakers just decided they do. “Table” is a sign.

One of the fathers of semiotics, Ferdinand de Saussure, used this diagram to explain a sign:

In this case, the signifier is the set of scribbles we call a word: table. The signified is that four-legged piece of furniture you’re imagining. All together, it’s a sign. (This is a simplification of an entire field. Don’t @ me. Just read this book instead.)

So, who cares? Isn’t that just learning a language? Well, not quite. The way images or objects or sounds “stand for” other things in our culture, or become signs, explain important societal relationships, like what we value or what frightens us.

For instance, apple pie is considered a great sign of Americana. Why? If you think about it, America is just a particular part of a continent that a bunch of people mutually recognize as the idea of “America.” It has no direct relationship to bits of apple covered in crust, a Dutch recipe which we refer to as pie. Yet, we say “American as apple pie.” At some point, Americans decided apple pie is a classic American dish that Americans love, and thus imbued it with lots of positive traits, some of which it may not even deserve: it’s simple, wholesome, comforting, delicious, classic. (Wholesome? Modern pie filling is not. Simple? Maybe it’s just me, but have you ever baked a pie???) But we’ve decided it represents us, so it must be good, and thus America is good, too, and then maybe we like apple pie a little more because it’s so American. Signifying is a constant cycle, friends, and we do it all largely subconsciously. It just kind of happens.

Which brings us back to that Pepsi ad. Ads are all about sign making. Advertisers want to turn their product into a positive sign so that you’ll buy it. A lady puts on makeup; she is suddenly smiling and shaking hands with a guy in a suit! Makeup = happiness and career success. A dude puts his kids’ clothes in the wash and they come out very clean; now he’s playing outside with (presumably his) kids! The washing machine = freedom from chores and more playtime. Products start to signify the things you truly want, so you buy them.

Pepsi’s ad has many, many signs. For instance, the image of model Kendall Jenner handing a policeman a Pepsi which then turns a protest into a party is comprised of many signs.

In Pepsi’s mind, they read as follows:

Kendall Jenner: Her image is the signifier. Considering her popularity, youth, conventional beauty, and trendy clothing, the signified is everything that is young, cool, hip, and, dare I say, woke.

The policeman: The historical signified of a policeman’s image in (white) American culture is authority, strength, and safety. But today it also signifies tradition, and older, conservative generations who revere authority.

The Pepsi can: The image of a Pepsi can is the signifier. Pepsi wanted the signified to be the harmony between all the age, class, race, sex, gender, et al. classifications of people in their commercial via the delicious taste of their sugar water beverage. A simple, classic American brand bringing people together. That way, the next time you saw the Pepsi can it would be a sign of youth, authority, social harmony, respect, and more, and you’d want to drink that sweet, sweet freedom.

But Pepsi didn’t account for the many signifieds that go along with the signifier of a policeman, or, for that matter, Jenner.

Depending on who you are, this policeman’s image, holding the line of a protest, is also standing for “the man,” or the government at large; he’s standing for abuse of authority; he’s standing for injustice and loved ones lost; he’s standing for Blue Lives Matter and anti-Black Lives Matter; he’s standing for older generations who oppose younger generations, who oppose bucking of tradition, who oppose diversity and inclusion.

To many, Jenner, as a beautiful, rich, white woman born to a rich family, signifies unearned privilege and elitism, which many see as a negative trait.

So instead of seeing a simple gesture — handing over a delicious beverage — which resolves a conflict, bridges divides, and starts a party — oh, the wonders of Pepsi! — we see privilege personified traipsing through a protest full of the underprivileged to hand a sign of commercialization and unhealthy living directly to “the man” and swiftly erasing all the problems.

There’s many more signs to unpack here — the blonde wig signifying superficiality, the cello signifying seriousness, all the literal paper signs signifying protest while saying barely anything at all — honestly, this could be a dissertation. (And should. If you write it, I will read it.)

But, you can see how what seems like just a stupid ad really packs in a whole lot of harmful stereotypes and signs about our culture into just a few minutes. Now, every time you hear someone say, “I don’t get it, it’s just an ad,” feel free to start breaking down the semiotics of Pepsi.