Arts and Entertainment

The Sydney Sweeney Ad: Our Thoughts

In a rare moment of consensus for the department, our esteemed artists and entertainers share their general skepticism about the cultural significance of American Eagle’s recent ad campaign featuring Sydney Sweeney.

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I don’t think that the “Sydney Sweeney has Great Jeans” ad is that big of a deal. While I do think that it is not in the best taste—as Sydney Sweeney is the definition of the popular beauty standard—I also don’t think that it is necessarily endorsing eugenics like some people are implying. —Emi Shimada, senior


I can definitely see why people would be rubbed the wrong way by this ad. However, I would not go as far as to say that the ad is “setting back feminism,” as some online critics claim. I think there should be a greater emphasis on campaigns that have a palpable impact rather than a celebrity who is doing nothing surprising, given her reputation. —Rachel Hong, junior


While the ad obviously has off-putting connotations, I don’t think it’s worth all the attention people are giving it. When stories like this are treated as “sensational,” our focus is pulled away from the real issues women face in this country. —Ravi Hasegawa, senior


The ad definitely isn’t the best marketing idea, but it’s also not as big of a deal as people are making it seem. If anything, it’s upsetting to see people so riled up by such a small problem while ignoring all the other issues women deal with in the world. —Glynnis Gravador, junior


While I think the Sydney Sweeney ad was in poor taste, given the current political climate, the backlash feels exaggerated. While there is valid criticism, much of the outrage has since turned into a meme. Most of what I see on TikTok now is people using the ad as a joke. —Sofia Sen, senior


The ad is outrageous, but the reaction towards it has discredited the leftist movement. It is intriguing how our pop culture and celebrities have been employed in our so-called culture war, but it is just the same divisive nonsense meant to make both sides look unreasonable and petty. Whatever happened to the Geico Lizard? The strong, silent type? —Oscar Scribner, junior


The backlash to this ad has been crazy and unjustified, with many even calling Sweeney a Nazi. The ad is certainly ill-conceived and haphazard, but to focus on it in such a politically charged time takes away from many of the actual issues that plague the nation. —Kabir Madan, junior


Wow, all this over a pair of jeans? The ad is definitely questionable, but good for Sydney Sweeney because she must have made a crazy amount of money for it. The fact that everyone is so worked up for it is honestly beneficial for American Eagle and Sweeney—it’s basically free advertising! —Maggie Miao, sophomore


To me, the ad wasn’t exactly phrased in the way it should’ve been, but the backlash that American Eagle and Sydney Sweeney [have] faced is way out of proportion. The amount of people on social media exaggerating the message of the ad [has] made it into a way bigger deal than it is, something that is only bringing more attention to it. —Molly Gupta, junior


This ad was not a good move. It was questionable and left a sour and bitter taste in everyone’s mouths. However, its controversy is pretty exaggerated and is being made a bigger deal than what it seems. People are being obsessive for minimal reasoning; it is an ad for “jeans” after all. —Alexander Deng, junior


Although the ad was clearly distasteful and overly sexualized (as is often the case with Sydney Sweeney’s work), the backlash feels wildly overblown given how minor the issue is in the broader landscape of media. The wording was careless and seemed to present her as an “ideal” figure, but the intention wasn’t to promote eugenics; it was to promote their product. The campaign shouldn’t have been published, especially with this lack of thought, but it didn’t need to be such a drawn-out discussion. —Stella Kubersky, junior

The process of creating an ad is a long and thoughtful process. The ideas for it first have to be presented, then [they go] through an intensive series of editing and approval to get it just right. The fact that this ad even got published is a little appalling. However, if American Eagle can get their ads back to normal, they may be able to have quite the redemption arc. —Sara Bhuiyan, sophomore