Click on this photo to get the full effect.
Now, I understand that the tome of gay-directed advertising isn’t exactly anything to brag about. There are a few golden moments (and the Commercial Closet does a fantastic job of cataloging them), but for the most part, we’re reduced to shirtless, hairless, beaded necklace wearing men walking along a P-town beach, sometimes with a reptile thrown carelessly over the shoulder. No matter the product. Most of the time, the message is something along the lines of, “Despite your AIDS, our obscenely expensive drug will help you do this!”
I’ve learned not to expect much from the drug companies or the pop and pop B&Bs with low ad budgets and even lower creative inspiration.
But when an ad monolith such as Pepsi devises something so terribly insulting that I virtually can’t get any work done, I’ve got to say something. Take a look at this ad for Diet Pepsi. And if you’re not outraged, allow me to tell you why you should be.
The Backstory
What you’re looking at is a picture of an old Diet Pepsi ad attached to someone’s refrigerator. Closer inspection reveals that the ad on the fridge appeared in Out magazine in April of 2005… on page 24. This led me to believe that the ad is fake, recreated for this new ad, because when’s the last time you saw a print ad in a magazine with a page number on it?
I was wrong. This ad did appear in 2005 (sans page number). And even then, it’s headline “Number of Diet Pepsi six packs consumed a week to keep this ’six pack’: 2″ sucked. Is Pepsi trying to suggest that drinking Diet Pepsi will actually give a guy a six pack? All I know is that I’m more bloated than Al Gore after a single Diet Pepsi.
Insult to Imagery
So the ad was real. And we are to believe that some gullible fag tore it out of a magazine two years ago, and now it remains. On his fridge. Fastened with a pair of ruby slippers and other magnets containing the words “hot,” “wow,” “wishing,” and “crush.” Ruby slippers! What, couldn’t they find a magnet that says, “Really, you’re welcome inside my cavernous ass”? Were there no magnetic butt plugs to be found?
Beyond the magnets, let’s address the issue of “straight worship.” You’re welcome to take me to task on this, but I have a suspicion that the scruffy, sand speckled surfer lad is straight. He’s not even meant to be gay. In fact, perhaps he’s even meant to perpetuate the dangerous notion that gay men desire above all else to fuck straight men. And at a time when gay panic jokes are all the rage (Tim Allen, are you reading?), this is a terrible idea to put out there. Not only does the ad-within-the-ad (which only ran in gay pubs) feature an obviously straight guy as a sex object, but the more current ad suggests that not only has some homo decided to honor the dude by giving him a place on his refrigerator (next to the wedding invitations and pictures drawn by nieces and nephews), but he’s been admiring him since 2005!
The Icing on the Gayke
So other than the studly breeder and faggy magnets, what’s the only other things on the fridge? A to-do list. Harmless, right? Everyone has a to-do list on his fridge. But take a nice, good look at this to-do list and tell me if it doesn’t make you want to kill yourself by way of aspertame-induced cancer.
The list has three items. The first: “Update profile.” Now either the owner of this fridge is Jennifer Grey, and she just needs a little brow-lift reminder, or the item is referring to a gay man’s online dating and/or sex cruising profile. Because we fags have so much invested in our Man Hunt profiles that we would handwrite ourselves a reminder to update it, and prioritize it over everything else we have to do! This ridiculousness begs the question: Why does the profile need updating? Has our straight-worshiping, Pepsi-drinking fag decided to consider himself ‘versatile’? Did he lose enough weight drinking Pepsi to gain an inch of cock? Or! Or! Is he newly in a relationship and needs to change his status? Further investigation suggests the latter is correct.
The second item on the list: “5 lbs by May.” What 5 lbs by May? Lift? Snort? Lose? I believe we’re meant to think our man is trying to lose five pounds by May, but have you ever in your life met a guy – gay or straight – that wants to lose only five pounds? Either he wants to lose 15+ or none. I promise. And does he really need a reminder that he’s fat on his refrigerator? I thought that’s what reflective brushed metal was for!
Finally, the third (and most insulting) item: “Finalize summer share.” So our man has a summer timeshare. Of course, now that he’s in a relationship, his new D.I.N.K status affords him such luxury. And it’s on Fire Island. Or P-town. And this item only made the list because he had already adopted an Asian baby, made a daily trip to IKEA, gotten his chest waxed, gone shopping with a bunch of beautiful women, bought tickets to Madonna, and paged through the J. Crew catalog.
So fuck you, Pepsi
You may think I’m over reacting. And perhaps I am. But I work in the industry. I spend a lot of time in creative development, and I have a pretty good idea of how the meeting went that eventually led to this ad. And I can almost guarantee you that it involved a creative team of straight dudes, and the one gay guy that works in the production studio providing input, even though he has no business doing creative development. And I’m sure they covered all the same jokes I did here in the process of writing the ad, but still decided that, at the end of the day, a few gay cliches and broaching the body image issue would sell a whole shitload of Pepsi.
I want to call Pepsi and ask them what the company’s policies are on same-sex benefits. If the answer is that they have great partner benefits, I would encourage them to make an ad about that instead. And if they don’t offer partner benefits, I would know that they see the gay market as a moneymaking opportunity and nothing more, and I’ll be forced to switch to Coke and give up my Pepsi induced six-pack.
I couldn’t agree with you more. This ad sucks and is very offensive. The Ruby slippers alone causes a little vomit to come unbidden to my mouth.
The clear message here is that gay men are 13-year-old girls, and need to be talked to as such. Revolting. Thanks for the post.
I think you’re totally right about the advertisement; it’s blatantly offensive and certainly isn’t working on me. PepsiCo, though, actually gets a pretty good rating from the Human Rights Campaign (http://www.hrc.org/Template.cfm?Section=Search_the_Database&Template=/CustomSource/WorkNet/srch_dtl.cfm&srchtype=DS&searchid=6&orgid=1248).
I don’t think that makes the ad any less offensive. I just that that although PepsiCo may have figured out that they need to respect the value of the pink dollar, they haven’t quite figured out that being a good ally doesn’t give one the permission to make faggot jokes. If that makes any sense.
Some people must actually like being pandered to, otherwise the market wouldn’t bear this kind of nonsense.
Also, that guy looks like a less ape-like version of Joe Millionaire.
I’ve missed the incredibly informed and pissed off Jordan. You know my favorite posts deal with that dick Santorum (where is he now?) or bullshit movies like Crash.
There are tons of good points in this post. One important message deals with the underlying hatred of feminine qualities possessed by guys, held by gays and straights alike. I totally understand the offense of this ad. But I should question what makes me the most angry about it - is it that Pepsi considers gay culture to be superficial and simple-minded? or that gay men such as myself are thought of as promiscuous Dorthy-loving bottoms. Both innuendoes kinda suck. But it’s got to be pretty shitty for overtly gay men to keep being reminded that they’re living cliches when all they want is to sing show-tunes and wear muscle shirts. I’m not making any new points here, especially since you, Jordan, clued me into this thought process several years ago.
There’s no doubt I feel better about my recent Diet Coke purchase. Still, keeping in mind what makes us angry about ads like this might keep our own self-deprication in check.
And thus, I take no interest in gay print.
Thank you x 100 for writing this.
Funny, I work in the industry as well and did not have the same reaction to this ad. In a light-hearted way it reminded me of several friends who have had stuff up on their fridge for years–postcards, guys from fashion mags, random stuff that does not make them straight-chasing “Dorothy-loving bottoms.” No, what made me smile was the proximity of your sponsors ad to the disliked Pepsi example. “Island House, a private, clothing optional resort for men in Old Towne Key West.” Complete with an image of a guy pulling his speedo down to show us his perfect bubble butt. No nasty sterotypes there, eh Jordan?
Um, Jordan, not for nothing, but isn’t that the same concept that the Key West half bare ass ad uses in the top corner of the site?
If soda ads start to be evolved social statements, whatever will politicians have to work with come election season?
Wait wait wait. Did you see what our sponsor is advertising? A private, clothing optional resort. There are no gay stereotypes here. There’s only nude male objectification, which I have never decried. If you’re advertising for briefs, leather chaps, protein powder, you could see why a half nude, muscly male is somewhat the default choice. Does it lack creativity? Sure. Does it bear the same scrutiny as a soda ad that mocks gay stereotypes? No.
Jordan, I agree with you on everything apart from this: you say the guy in the ad is “obviously straight”. Huh? Because he’s too good-looking? Because he’s carrying a surfboard? I don’t get it. Are you implying that gay men couldn’t possibly look/act like that? Come on…
I found this post super cleaver and funny, and the things you point out are lazy, clicheed, stupid thinking on the advertisers’ part. In fact, i liked this post so much I linked to it–I hope that’s ok…
Howtospendit,
I know it’s not exactly pc to say someone “looks” a certain way - gay, straight, whathaveyou.
But when you’re doing an advertisment, and you’re trying to convey a not-so-subtle idea, you do so by dropping clues. Are we to assume he’s gay because he’s appearing in a gay-themed ad? Keep in mind that nothing in the ad-within-the-ad suggests he’s gay. The original ad could have just as easily appeared in Maxim or Men’s Health, right? Now, the mere fact that some overweight, time-share owning homo actually cut out the picture and plastered it to his fridge is a bit more suggestive that he’s actually into the guy.
Now, I’m all for acknowledging that gays can come in all sorts of packages, but sometime you have to read into the advertiser’s/agency’s intent. And in this case, by casting a guy who looks stereotypically straight and doing a stereotypically straight activity, they’ve made it clear what’s going on here.
“DIET” Pepsi
Loose 5 lbs
Look good on Beach
When on a diet people put pictures of skinny people on the Fridge. Other than the red pumps, there is nothing gay about this ad. If you are not a friend of Dorothy, fine for you, but why the hell are you hating on bottoms? What make you think the femmy boy in the ad is a Top? Wishfull thinking?
Point taken. Although I still bristle at the thought. Btw, where I grew up, it wouldn’t occur to anyone that this guy could be anything but gay: he works out, has longer hair, good teeth. Anyway, thanks for responding and keep up the good work. Love this blog
Please, Jordan, let me.
Tubecam,
Don’t be an ass. Everyone else manages to make their point while including a case to back it up and without making personal attacks. Really, most people here were discussing (as well as making light of) a pertinent social justice issue. I’m sure everyone welcomes your comments, but next time, please make sure you understand both the post and what you’re saying.
FYI, the ad did appear in a straight magazine: Men’s Health. August 2005, Page 103.
Get a life.
Sterotypes within the gay community–or any for that matter–happen for a reason.
The ad is about a guy with a summer share who wants to get motivated to get ready for the beach. Who does not want to lose a few pounds for the summer? Any of you guys not have magnets or pics on your fridge? Or are you all so pretentious and closeted that your anal retentive stainless steel kitchens for show only don’t allow it. Come on now.
Kudos to Pepsi for recognizing the gay community and advertising to them in the first person. Where is the outrage when companies pander to the latino, african american, or women’s market.
If you don’t advertise to gays the community is up in arms. You advertise to gays and the community doesn’t think it is good enough. The gay community has to stop eating its own and have some self-pride. Stop being the victim. It is no wonder that gay advertising and the gay media remains in the bowels of Madison Ave.
Ted, you have a wonderful point. Pepsi should be applauded for advertising specifically to the gay community. That’s excellent, and I wish I had mentioned it more strongly in the post. But I’m still not comfortable with the propagation of shallow stereotypes. Anyone who knows me knows that I’m and out and proud gay. I had an HRC sticker on my car when I was 16 years old. Being closeted isn’t an issue.
For me, the issue is in the sum of this ad’s parts. I would have been fine with the straight worship. Or the inch-deep to-do list. Or the magnets. But the fact that this ad incorporates all of those things without a single, intelligible, respectful nod to the gay community concerns me.
This is hardly pandering. And don’t compare it to an ad pointed at the African American community. If that were true, the compared ad would be equally as offensive. Imagine, if you will, a refrigerator. And on the refrigerator is a skinny white girl in a bikini. And she’s being held there with magnets in the shape of diamond-covered money symbols, another magnet saying, “It ain’t easy bein’ a pimp,” and a third saying “HOTT!!” Then, a to-do list above it, with three items: 1) pick up grape kool-aid, 2) meet Jamal at KFC, 3) TiVo “Live at the Apollo.”
There are millions of ads out there that manage to respect the gay community. www.commercialcloset.com features many of the best ones. It’s not hard to do.
I am straight, and I happened upon your blog by typing in Fire Island because I have heard it referenced before but didn’t know what it was. Anyway, I have no qualms with gay culture– so let me just put that to rest before I give you my honest opinion…
Your post was great. I read the whole thing, and every single comment taboot. However, when another poster pointed out that your blog has very stereotypical advertising, I almost didn’t believe it. I scrolled up, and as I took in the whole contents of the page, your credibility tanked. If you look at your blog page, it’s very reminiscient of the collage on the refrigerator in the Diet Pepsi ad. There is A. The title of your website, which alludes not only to the male anatomy, but even uses the word “club”. Subtle nod to night life, perhaps? B. Tags about Beyonce, Jennifer Hudon, Felattio (need I say more…) and C. Perhaps the most damning of all to your credibility are the ads on your very site. I know you’ve tried to explain above, but I think it’s a complete copout. You say Diet Pepsi’s ads are insulting when they drop the “time share” bomb on the to-do list, yet your site has the exact same thing.
I like your writing, but I’ll be damned if this isn’t one of the clearest examples of rejecting something that absolutely resembles who you are. It’s invasive targeted advertising; that’s why it sucks, because they nailed your personality to the wall (as far as I can tell, that is).
Allen,
Thanks for writing.
You are absolutely correct that running a blog called The PEN15 Club which runs stereotypical advertising might seem hypocritical when criticizing Pepsi for running a stereotypical ad.
Let me, again, try to justify it. As for the content of this blog (its title, topics, photos, etc.), it is very different from advertising. It’s content. It’s a product in and of itself. A gay-related product. Something very different from selling sugar water to gays.
As for the ads, you got me there. Two things: first, I have no control over the ads that appear on the site. They’re part of a service - that space is reserved for whomever buys a placement through the service, and the ad appears. And I do roll my eyes every time another nude male appears there. But again, those ads are selling gaycations, underwear that makes your package look bigger, and gay-themed jewelry. It’s not Pepsi. So I (maybe hypocritically) give them a pass.
Finally, the more I think about this the more I realize that the real reason the Pepsi ad upset me so much was its lack of creativity or anything clever. Pepsi took the lowest common denominator when trying to speak to gays: ruby slippers, body image issues, and straight worship, among others. It wasn’t the lack of sensitivity that bothered me - it was the fact that someone in an ad agency thought by sprinkling in the two or three most common gay stereotypes, they’d somehow be more “relevant” to a huge, rich portion of the population.
You might argue that the same goes for this blog, but I’d counter that we’re not selling Pepsi. We’re “selling” gay-themed content, which often includes a great ass fucking reference and a shameful scowl in the direction of JHud.
I’m with Jordan - the naked gay resort ads are in a totally different ballpark from the Diet Pepsi ad. It’s the same reason your siblings are allowed to make fun of your mom, but the neighbor kid can’t. When a gay business uses that imagery to fulfill its business plan of making gay guys horny, it’s totally different from a gargantuan soft drink enterprise assuming that the same imagery is the only thing our demo will respond to.
And yes, I reserve the right to obsess for four months about Dreamgirls’ Oscar prospects and still be offended at the assumption that I’ll identify with some self-loathing queen’s ruby slipper refrigerator magnet.