Kendall Jenner Pepsi Ad
After learning about the dark side of propaganda throughout our course, I wanted to analyze a piece of contemporary propaganda that has current political implications and opens up a discussion regarding the narrative surrounding racial justice protesting. When thinking about a contemporary artifact I could analyze for this project, my mind immediately jumped to Kendall Jenner’s Pepsi ad- I mean, who is more contemporary (and harmful) than the Kardashians/Jenners? I think that this advertisement is a perfect example of a piece of media that originally aimed to spread a message of peace and unity, but missed the mark entirely and instead spreads false information about the realities of protesting and fighting for equal rights.
For my screencast, my goal was to frame the Pepsi advertisement through the lens of 2017, the time period it was released. Leading up to 2017, the political climate in the U.S. was extremely tense. Trump had just been elected the year before, and his presidency sparked a huge divide between the right and the left, especially about social justice issues such as police brutality and racism within our justice systems. Due to the power of social media, many cases of police brutality were gaining national coverage, and the Black Lives Matter movement was able to gain a lot of traction as a result. I wanted to prioritize the context of when this ad was released so that my audience could fully understand how as a standalone, this ad seems harmless and even positive, but given the full picture of the racial injustices that were occurring at the time, it takes on a different meaning. After gathering this research, I rewatched the advertisement with the history fresh in my mind and was in even more disbelief on the ad’s tone deafness then when I saw it for the first time. I think that one of the most harmful types of propaganda is one that attempts to paint a false picture (regardless of original intentions) specifically about political issues because it can cause people to be misinformed. Misinformation is dangerous because it can influence people’s thoughts, behaviors and decisions and can sway people from the truth. In the case of this ad, a false narrative was created in which fighting for social change is an easy, simple feat rather than a deep frustration and anger that stems from systemic and historical racial issues.
During the process of making my screencast, I gathered pictures that would tell a story and show my audience visuals that would effectively enhance my script. I especially like the last slide, because it shows the reactions of people on Twitter to the ad and really emphasizes the harm that it caused to Black communities, who felt like their struggles in fighting for equal rights were demeaned by this advertisement. The struggles I faced when creating my screencast came when I actually had to record my narration. I kept forgetting to change the slides when I needed to show specific photos, and overall had to practice the timing of pairing my script with the pictures that I wanted to show. It took me several takes to get my final product, but overall I enjoyed the creative process of combining curated visuals with a narration to tell the story that I wanted to tell.
Screencast Script
As an example of harmful propaganda, I decided to focus on a Pepsi ad starring Kendall Jenner that was released in 2017. The ad has since faced criticism and backlash for its tone deafness regarding the portrayal of protests against police brutality. The reason why this ad is a prime example of harmful propaganda is because it promotes an oversimplification of solving historical and systemic racial justice issues, which is essentially a form of spreading false information.
To fully understand the implications of this ad and why it is so harmful, I want to explain some of the context and history of the Black Lives Matter Movement. The movement began after the 2012 murder of Trayvon Martin and gained traction after his murderer was acquitted with no guilty charges. The movement has since transformed from a social media hashtag to organized protests and demonstrations calling for change in regards to police brutality and the racism Black people face in our justice system. (Howard University School of Law).
In 2016, during a preseason game, an NFL quarterback named Colin Kaepernick refused to stand for the national anthem. It wasn’t until the last preseason game that others had begun to kneel during the anthem as well, to show solidarity against the police killings of Alton Sterling, Philando Castille, Charles Kinsey and Freddy Gray. Colin received backlash and criticism for his peaceful protest, but Colin stood his ground, responding by saying “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses Black people and people of color. To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way” (History.com)
This background shows that the time during which this Pepsi ad was released was a period of high racial tension in the United States. By choosing a rich, white supermodel to make peace with police officers during a protest through simply handing them a can of Pepsi with a smile, this ad is exploiting people of color who actually take real risks in regards to racial justice issues. While on the surface this ad seems to promote unity and peace, it is instead spreading misinformation about what these types of protests are actually like. It is harmful to spread this message through advertising because it undermines the cause in which so many people believe in and are actively fighting for, overall making light of very serious situations. Fighting for equal rights doesn’t normally entail groups of beautiful, smiling, and laughing people. It takes real courage, frustration and a lot of hard work.
Works Cited
Bachman, Jonathan. Kendall Jenner in the Pepsi ad and Ieshia Evans during the Baton Rouge Protest. 2017. NBC, https://www.nbcnews.com/news/nbcblk/pepsi-ad-kendall-jenner-echoes-black-lives-matter-sparks-anger-n742811
Fletcher, Julie. Protesters participating in a rally for Trayvon Martin. 2012. AP News, https://apnews.com/article/Trayvon-Martin-death-10-years-later-c68f12130b2992d9c1ba31ec1a398cdd
Yucel, Karem. Black Lives Matter protests in Minneapolis, Minnesota. 2020. Getty images, https://www.axios.com/2020/06/08/black-lives-matter-protests-what-you-need-to-know
Getty Images. Black Lives Matter Demonstrators walk across Brooklyn Bridge into Manhattan. 2020. Getty images, https://www.ft.com/content/2b0f40c0-8e07-4eb4-b2d6-0ed0e3599243
History.com Editors. “Quarterback Colin Kaepernick Sits during National Anthem, Gives Interview about It for the First Time.” HISTORY, History.com, 9 July 2021, https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/colin-kaepernick-kneels-during-national-anthem.
Howard University School of Law. “HUSL Library: A Brief History of Civil Rights in the United States: The Black Lives Matter Movement.” The Black Lives Matter Movement — A Brief History of Civil Rights in the United States — HUSL Library at Howard University School of Law, Howard University School of Law, 6 Jan. 2023, https://library.law.howard.edu/civilrightshistory/BLM.
Maturen, Stephen. Celebrations after the guilty verdict in George Floyd’s murder. 2021. Getty images, https://abcnews.go.com/US/photos/black-lives-matter-movement-photos-44402442/image-77809565
Nike. Colin Kaepernick appears as a face of Nike’s advertisement. 2018. Nike, https://www.nbcnews.com/business/consumer/nike-takes-heat-new-kaepernick-ad-n906311
Pepsi. “Live for Now’’ starring Kendall Jenner. Youtube, uploaded by Yash Yadav 6 April 2017, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uwvAgDCOdU4
Ramirez, Orlando. A San Francisco 49ers fan holds up a sign in protest of Colin Kaepernick. 2016. USA Today Sports, https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/colin-kaepernicks-protest-has-nothing-to-do-with-the-military/
Warren, Ted S. Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem before an NFL game. 2016. AP/Shutterstock.com, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Colin-Kaepernick
