American Eagle Officially weighed Controversy about the latest advertising campaign Actress Sydney Sweeney. The event has been the subject of widespread debate and criticism on social media, prompting the brand to issue a statement on its official Instagram account.
The campaign's tagline “Sydney Sweeney's Jeans are great” was at the heart of the discussion. Many critics point to the word play between “jeans” and “genes”, saying that the focus of the movement is Sweeney, a blond, blue-eyed woman, with a problematic background.
The conversation was caused by now-deleted videos where Sweeney heard: “Genes spread from parents to offspring, often identifying features such as hair color, personality and even eye color. My jeans are blue.” This particular ad (some thinks it is a direct reference to eugenics) is widely shared and dissected online.
In response, American Eagle doubled. The company's statement reads in part: “'Sydney Sweeney's jeans were and have always been about jeans. Her jeans. Her story. Our story. We will continue to celebrate everyone wearing Ae jeans in a confident way. Great jeans are great for everyone.”
However, the statement did not calm the conversation, with some users praising the brand’s position, while others expressed disappointment at the lack of a more direct apology or acknowledgement of specific criticisms.
According to the chief marketing officer of American Eagle, the campaign was intended to be “clever, even provocative” and seemed to have successfully caused a lot of buzz. But this buzz is definitely mixed. On the one hand, the activity has reportedly led to short-term growth in the company's stock. On the other hand, it created a PR fire, with some critics questioning the brand’s social awareness and commitment to inclusion.
Furthermore, the controversy is compared with past advertising campaigns that have caused similar anger in the past, e.g. Brooke Shield'The provocation of the 1980s Calvin Klein advertise. Ultimately, this latest development highlights a growing trend in which brands must browse the landscape in which simple games on the word can be interpreted in very different ways, leading to online censorship and debate.
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