Top 10 Commercials That Caused The Most OUTRAGE

#10: Underage Modeling Accusations (1995)

Calvin Klein

What is it about clothing that often makes for such risque marketing? This 1990s denim campaign featured models that looked like teens posing suggestively in a wood-paneled basement. In one of the commercials, a person behind the camera even asks them to undress. Parent groups, religious groups, child welfare organizations, and many others reacted negatively. Some threatened boycotts. The U.S. Justice Department’s Child Exploitation and Obscenity Section even looked into Calvin Klein. President Bill Clinton said the models were “half-dressed adolescents.” The commercials were removed from circulation, and Calvin Klein placed an ad in the New York Times saying they were “taken aback” by the negative response.

#9: “Bob Johnson” Super Bowl Commercial (1997)

Holiday Inn

This ad got negative attention at the worst possible time: a Super Bowl. In the ad, a tall blonde woman enters her class reunion and draws lots of stares. A male attendee cringes at realizing he knew her as Bob Johnson. And then the voiceover says, “It’s amazing the changes you can make for a few thousand dollars.” It compares the quality of staying at this hotel chain to the impact of a person’s gender transition! The 1997 Super Bowl advert got plenty of buzz, and not all of it good. Some members of the queer community approved of the gesture; others found it offensive and mocking. Maybe it was ahead of its time? Swing and a miss, Holiday Inn.

#8: Talking Pandas (2008)

SalesGenie

A commercial or ad campaign missing the mark is bad enough. But this one really didn’t need to do … any of what it did. SalesGenie, a marketing company, ran an ad during the 2008 Super Bowl showing a family of pandas that spoke in highly stereotypical Asian accents. That depiction would be bad enough already for its racial insensitivity. But the family was also struggling to keep their business, called “Ling Ling’s Bamboo Furniture Shack,” afloat. They had stereotypical names, too. It makes sense that many people didn’t respond well to this commercial! The CEO opted to take it off the air, telling the New York Times at the time, “We never thought anyone would be offended.”

#7: Kissing Priests (2011)

Benetton

This high-end clothing brand was already known for getting people talking with its advertising. As part of their “Unhate” campaign in 2011, the company made doctored photos of world leaders kissing each other on the lips. This included pairings of the then-U.S. president with his Chinese counterpart as well smooches between religious figures. The Vatican and spokespeople from other religious groups slammed the imagery, saying it was blasphemous. United Colors of Benetton stated that the ads were meant to challenge perspectives and promote kindness. But the images ended up getting pulled anyway. Admittedly, it’s … unclear what the campaign had to do with clothes.

#6: “White is Purity” (2017)

Nivea

It makes sense to emphasize that a skincare product is invisible -- that it doesn’t leave stains on clothes, specifically. But Nivea missed the mark, and in fact left one, with this marketing tactic. The brand ran a social media ad with a tagline that read, “White is purity. Keep it clean, keep it bright. Don’t let anything ruin it.” The promotion was primarily targeted at audiences in the Middle East. News outlets worldwide, including The New York Times, the Guardian, the BBC, and more, covered the controversy. Nivea issued a statement acknowledging the misstep and retracted the ad. Not all publicity is good publicity, and “purity” is not the same as “cleanliness.”

#5: “Sometimes Lighter is Better” (2018)

Heineken

In 2018, Heineken ran one of those commercials that makes you wonder how many people approved of it beforehand. Here’s the scene: A light-skinned bartender passes a woman a beer, which breezes past other patrons first. The hangup was that the woman was white as well, while the people the bottle slid by were Black. A lower-calorie beer can be a great option! But that has nothing to do with the drink’s color, or the color of anything or anyone else, for that matter. Oh, also, reggae music was playing in the commercial. Heineken’s odd combination of tagline and imagery had celebrities talking, with people like Chance the Rapper calling it out on X at the time. When an ad’s hook implies that light things are better than dark things, it might need a bit of revision.

#4: “Innocence is Sexier Than You Think” (1975)

Love's Baby Soft

What, exactly, is meant to be attractive about naiveté? This commercial from 1975 was pitching a line of personal hygiene products, including body mist and lotion. Soft, powdery scents are definitely a selling point. But the ad opens by saying babies are irresistible. It then shows a grown woman in a youthful babydoll-style dress licking a lollipop suggestively. The male narrator describes the products as having the “innocent, clean scent of a baby that grew up to be very sexy.” It’s unclear who this is supposed to appeal to, especially as the viewer is forced to watch the woman stare into the camera while she … enjoys her candy. Innocence isn’t sexier than we think!

#3: “We Believe: The Best Men Can Be” (2019)

Gillette

It’s sometimes said that no good deed goes unpunished; this could describe razor company Gillette’s 2019 commercial touching on toxic masculinity. The messaging calls on men to lift each other up and do more to address bad behavior. It even switches up their famous tagline, going from “The best a man can get” to “The best a man can be.” Gillette also pledged to donate millions of dollars over three years to nonprofits supporting relevant causes. However, many news outlets and thousands of viewers didn’t respond well, seeing the ad as dismissive of traditional male values or traits. Eventually the dislikes outweighed the likes on YouTube.

#2: Real Beauty Campaign (2017)

Dove

This long-running ad series pushed a message of body positivity by featuring ethnically and physically diverse models. But in 2017, Dove missed big on Facebook. The three-second clip showed a Black woman changing out of a shirt in a color similar to her skin tone. A white woman in a white shirt is revealed in her place, who also changes shirts to become a woman with another skin tone. The message tried to be a reminder that all humans are inherently beautiful. But instead, it made viewers offended, seeing the ad as racially insensitive at worst and confusing at best. Outlets such as Gawker and CNN, as well as thousands of commenters, sounded off angrily. Dove issued a formal apology, but the damage was done.

#1: Live for Now Moments (2017)

Pepsi

A celebrity in an ad can help promote a product. It’s also helpful to tap into current events. However, Pepsi made a bad move in 2017 with their commercial featuring Kendall Jenner and … the Black Lives Matter movement. In it, the famous model and her friends enter a protest, which is framed like a relaxing stroll. Jenner hands a Pepsi to one of the law enforcement officers to try and connect with him. The commercial had a casual air and seemed to undermine the seriousness of BLM and police brutality. It was only around for a single day before it was pulled, but it was almost universally mocked. Lesson to other brands: Don’t trivialize a difficult issue. Even if you’re using someone famous.

What ads have you seen that made your jaw drop in a bad way? Let us know in the comments.