President Trump has delved into the controversy surrounding actress Sydney Sweeney and her recent controversial advertising campaign with American Eagle.
“Sidney Sweeney, a registered Republican, has the 'HOTTEST' ad. It's an American Eagle ad and the jeans are 'flying off the shelves,'” he wrote in his magazine. mail on Truth Social Monday morning. “Go and get them, Sydney!”
companies stock sharply increased after Trump's publication.
It was the second time in less than 24 hours that the president spoke about the debate. On weekends he sided with Sweeney while speaking with reporters after being informed that the actress is a registered Republican.
“Is she a registered Republican?” – Trump asked. “Oh, now I love her ad. You'd be surprised how many people are Republicans. That's something I didn't know, but I'm glad you told me.” He added, “If Sydney Sweeney is a registered Republican, I think her ad is fantastic.” Sweeney has been a registered Republican in Florida since June 2024. BuzzFeed reports this..
Last week, a senior White House communications official also responded to criticism of the clothing retailer's ad, calling their criticism of the campaign “distorted” and “moronic” in a social media post this week.
White House Communications Director Stephen Chung wrote on X The claim that the ad contains harmful racial overtones is a sign of “cancel culture out of control” and an example of why voters decided to re-elect Donald Trump in last year's election.
What began as a buzzy commercial starring one of Hollywood's most sought-after actresses quickly escalated into a wide-ranging debate about sex, race, politics and American culture in general.
How did one single 30-second ad create such a stir? That's how we got here.
What is advertising?
Advertising, or rather series of advertisementsbuilt around the slogan “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” – a play on words that combines American Eagle denim with the genetic traits that gave Sweeney her famous voluptuous figure.
Some videos are more explicit and specifically talk about her genetic background.
“Genes are passed from parents to offspring, often determining traits such as hair color, personality, and even eye color,” Sweeney says in the paper. one clip. “My jeans are blue.”
Sweeney has been a highly successful partner for numerous brands since becoming one of the breakout stars of the HBO teen drama. Euphoria in 2019. For example, earlier this year, the 27-year-old actress turned her attention to a little-known soap company called Doctor Squatch selling bars of soap that were mixed with your own personal bath water.
Depending on who you ask, the American Eagle ad is just another example of a brand capitalizing on Sweeney's star power to connect with consumers, or it is a modern example of a racially offensive message.
What was the criticism?
Criticism of the ad from online commentators began pouring in almost immediately after American Eagle posted the first video online last week. The nature of the comments varies, but in general the main complaint is that ads praising the genes/jeans of a white, blonde, blue-eyed actress send the message that certain types of heritage are better than others.
“Sydney Sweeney is said to have a great body and therefore great genes, and therefore he is a product of genetic superiority,” content creator Jess Britwich said in an interview. Tik Tok video it has been viewed almost 3 million times.
Other social media users went so far as to call the ad Nazi propaganda or means of promotion white supremacy.
As the debate gained momentum, cultural commentators at some of America's largest news outlets began to voice their more nuanced views.
“She embodies the almost mythological beautiful but unpretentiously sexy girl next door femininity that dominated the media in the 1990s and early 2000s,” MSNBC producer. Hannah Holland wrote. “Overall the campaign feels regressive rather than retro, offensive and not irreverent.”
What is criticism for criticism?
Chung is not the only politician with the right to condemn ad critics. Republican Senator Ted Cruz reacted on X, writing: “Now the crazy left is against beautiful women. I'm sure this will do well in the polls…”.
In the eyes of many conservatives, the reaction to Sweeney's ad typifies what they see as the left's extreme hypersensitivity to even the most innocuous topics.
“A blonde, blue-eyed actress talking about jeans—or even genes—is just a play on words, not a secret salute to white supremacy,” New York Times columnist John McWhorter. wrote on Tuesday.
Popular conservative commentator Charlie Kirk criticized what he called a “ridiculous overreaction” to the ad, which he said was “far from offensive.”
Why is this even a problem?
The controversy surrounding the American Eagle ad has raised a deeper question about whether we, as a culture, should even grapple with this kind of thing. Some commentators say the entire episode is a troubling symptom of how even something as minor as a jeans ad gets sucked into an endless cycle of outrage in which meaningful discussion becomes impossible.
“Everyone ends up getting very angry in these scenarios, which allows for moral superiority and is also good for online content creation,” Charlie Worzel, Atlantic staff writer wrote on Tuesday. “Sweeney’s ad, like any good piece of discourse, allows everyone to use a political and cultural moment for different purposes.”
Thumbnail cover photo: American Eagle on YouTube.
