This week’s discussion on how we market to the LGBTQ population got me thinking a lot about the recent scandal involving Bud Light. Back in March, Bud Light launched a campaign involving transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, and it included rainbow-colored cans of the beer. What followed was a load of backlash from anti-trans and LGBTQ populations. People started to boycott Bud Light, refusing to buy the beer. The article I read this week talks about the boycotts and the ways that corporate America has to navigate through this growing division amongst our population.

There are other companies the article mentions that have faced recent backlash for their pro-LGBTQ initiatives. Target employees were facing threats from customers who didn’t support their Pride Month merchandise, to the point where the company has decided to pull some of its merchandise. Starbucks locations can no longer decorate for Pride Month over fear that there will be retaliation of some sort. Even Disney World is having its fair share of clashes with Florida governor Ron DeSantis over his policies surrounding the LGBTQ population.

Seeing all of these examples of the hate and division that still exists among us really gets me thinking a lot about how we should be marketing to this population. We’ve read this week that there are steps forward that are happening when it comes to inclusion and acceptance. In fact, the majority of consumers fall under the umbrella of being willing to embrace the LGBTQ population. However, this article and these boycotts prove that there is still a level of hate in the world that cannot go away. I think the biggest challenge for marketers in this situation is to figure out the best way to create your inclusive environment while still catering to your target audience.

Bud Light, for example, should know the demographic that it generally serves. It is just a fact that a lot of typically right-leaning people would be supporters of the brand. These people sometimes might not be accepting of the LGBTQ population and the inclusive marketing Bud Light was going for. It is an interesting added issue that marketers now have to face. Almost everything is politically charged in today’s society, with the social and political getting mixed together. Companies have to make decisions based on their values, but also the values of their customers in order to be successful. It is a balancing act I do not envy, and it will be fascinating to see how the future of marketing reacts to this polarized environment going forward.

I wanted to find an article this week that really spoke to the stereotypes that minority groups still face today. One group that has faced harsh and unfair stereotypes since 9/11 is the Muslim population in America. The belief that any and every Muslim you see is a terrorist is a fear that many people still have in our country, and it is one that has severely impacted the lives of many innocent Muslims.

The article I found this week was from the L.A. Times from April 10, 2023. It was about how police were searching for a man that vandalized a mosque in Koreatown. They said he defaced the mosque with anti-Muslim hate words. He was not in custody yet, but was wanted for felony vandalism.

The article goes on to discuss how hate crimes are such a prevalent problem in Los Angeles still, particularly among the Muslim population. It talks about how hate crimes in general have slightly decreased overall, but the Muslim population was one of the groups where they rose. They talked about how it was a hopeful statistic for some, but there is still plenty of work to be done.

This article relates back to this course because a population of people who don’t get the attention they deserve when it comes to social justice is the Muslim American population. We as communicators cannot forget this population. There are harmful stereotypes all over the media when it comes to the Muslim population. Every crime show has Muslim terrorists as the villains. The news portrays Muslims as dangerous in the media, constantly highlighting the groups like ISIS that are the outliers of the population. There are little to no television shows or movies that have a Muslim family or even a character as the main protagonist. Women in hijabs can never speak English and are typically very traditional. Not all of this is true in real life. We need to change that narrative, and normalize Muslim Americans in our media culture. This population still stands apart from feeling like they are part of America, mainly because most Americans still view them as foreign and other. Until we can change that narrative in the media, these real-world hate crimes will continue. It is an integral part of our job as communicators to bridge that gap and market to this population just as we do to other marginalized groups in America.

This week, I thought a lot about the systemic issues that still face our society today, and how the media/advertising world fits in. My mind immediately went to the rebranding that has happened over the past few years since the rise of the BLM movement. The first one that popped into my head was Aunt Jemima syrup and pancake mix.

This brand’s logo and name was used to market these products, and it pushed a stereotype that has persisted for generations. “Aunt Jemima” is a discriminatory and racist name that typically would refer to black women who were slaves. As America’s eyes were finally starting to become fixed on the sights of changing the world around us for the better, brands like this one took a hit.

I found a CNN article from the day after the brand officially changed its name to Pearl Milling Company. It basically talks about the reasoning for the switch and how they came to the decision on the name. It turns out, that was the original name of the company and it refers to where the products were originally created. Why the company ever called itself Aunt Jemima is beyond me.

The article goes on to talk about how PepsiCo did not know how the public would react to the change, seeing as they were completely renaming a popular brand. Looking back on it now, we know that there were mixed reactions. There were those who embraced the change, viewing it as the right thing to do, getting rid of the stereotypical and racist name and logo. There were others, however, who were outraged at the change, not understanding why people were so sensitive.

In my opinion, those people are not intentionally cruel or insensitive to the struggles that African Americans face everyday. I think that they are just ignorant to it all. They don’t understand how that logo could make people of color feel, because they simply cannot ever understand. That is why multicultural marketing is so important. Learning how different groups think and feel is important in knowing how to market a product to them. It is essential for us as marketers and communicators to understand (as best as we can) the feelings and struggles of different racial and ethnic groups, so that nothing like the Aunt Jemima situation happens in the future. It’s the only way to run a successful campaign in today’s ever-changing and diverse society.

An article I came across this week, after the idea for this post was inspired by a commercial I saw on TV, discusses the rebranding and marketing strategies of Folgers, the coffee brand. The basic story is this: Folgers has developed a reputation for being a “grandma” brand, and it is being overshadowed in today’s society with the newer, trendier, “hipster” brands taking over. So, the marketing team took to embracing that reputation instead of fighting against it.

This article discusses how Folgers has now leaned into that “bad” reputation, by even using the song of the same title on their commercials. They pride themselves in being a “regular” brand, marketing to the everyday coffee drinker, blue-collar American who just wants a fresh cup of affordable black coffee in the morning. That is what their ads are now doing. Check out what I mean by watching the ad below!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CIB-mWsFq1c&t=63s

I see this relating to this course because it does provide a great example of multicultural marketing. It might not be in the traditional or egregious sense of racial differences or ethnic differences, but the difference between types of Americans. Those who might be seen as “hipster” wanting more of a unique or trendy coffee brand are not the target audience of this campaign. Folgers is leaning into the working-class, blue-collar American. You could call those different cultures in their own right. Folgers also leans into their hometown of New Orleans, highlighting some of the music and culture of that city. It’s another way of targeting the people they want to, as folks from New Orleans might see this ad and relate more to it by seeing their culture.

I really liked this example, because I think it is a great way to showcase more than just racial and ethnic differences. Socioeconomic class, social beliefs and interests, and other small factions of what makes a culture are also represented in today’s marketing strategies. These ads that target specific groups are still part of multicultural marketing. It made me think a lot more about this class and how far down the rabbit hole we can really go when thinking about the different cultures we market to and what that word really means.

To really understand more about this campaign and the article I read this week that prompted my blog post today, check it out here! Thanks for reading, see you next week!

I spent some time watching the TV show “Blackish” this week. I have to say, I think this TV show is an interesting portrayal of an African American family. It isn’t what some might consider a “typical black family,” which is what I think makes it so unique.

For those that haven’t watched this show, the basic premise is that the main family is a black family who is rich (father is an advertising executive and mother is a doctor) and lives in a predominantly white neighborhood. It is interesting to see this family, even though they are immersed in a very privileged lifestyle, still have to worry and deal with the same struggles that all black people deal with every day. It was a great way to show viewers that the circumstances don’t change the inherent discrimination rooted in society for black people.

From the very first episode of the show, you as the viewer are given the same wake-up call that Andre (the main character) is given. The pilot episode centers on Andre being up for a promotion at his job as an ad executive. He talks to his wife about how excited he is, and how much he has worked for it. When the scene comes where his boss is announcing his promotion, he tells Andre that he is being promoted to Senior Vice President, Urban Division. This floors Andre, and is designed to floor the viewer, because the impression now exists that Andre only received the promotion because of the fact that his blackness will allow him to relate to this content better. Talking to his wife, she can’t seem to understand why he’s upset; he still got the promotion, he should be happy, right? Andre views it as lesser though, because he wasn’t promoted to Senior Vice President solely based on his merit. There was a consideration of his race in that decision. When watching this, I definitely had my eyes opened to what someone of color has to constantly think about when they are promoted in a job or given any type of leg up in the world: “Was this truly earned, or am I being treated differently/put into a group because of my race?” Does Andre’s company only think he can be successful with typically “black” culture (like the urban division)? I have never really had to deal with that. I do have a small taste of it by being a woman, always having to fight extra hard to be taken seriously. But, nothing I have experienced was so blatantly targeted like it was for Andre. It is a different kind of glass ceiling that Andre has to navigate through. Ultimately, he decides to accept the promotion and do the best he can in the position, because he realizes that his role still provides some representation in leadership, and he can use it to build his own reputation. I thought the pilot was a great introductory episode to the show, because it gives you a taste of the issues that the show will address, while also allowing you to laugh along with Andre as he hilariously reacts to his circumstances. It is a good balance of seriousness and comedy that we need to truly embrace talking about these systemic issues.

The second episode of the show toned it down a bit when it comes to highlighting the day to day black experience. It wasn’t exactly a controversial topic or issue or racism that needed to be solved. Instead, this episode covered the topic of how the family deals with openly communicating with each other over serious topics, particularly the sex talk. Andre finds out that he hasn’t been in the loop for his son, Andre Jr., when it comes to his knowledge and education on the sexual experiences a teenager might be exploring. You learn about how Andre never received the talk from his father, and he is very stunted when it comes to his ability to talk with Jr. about uncomfortable things. The basic point here is that the environment that Andre was brought up in directly effects how he is with his own children. It is mentioned in the episode that Andre’s father, Pops, never had the talk with him or really ever communicated with him. They have a conversation at the end of the episode about how Pops’s priority at the time was providing for his family. There wasn’t a lot of time for open communication with his kids because he was working hard to give them a better life. This conversation touches on what I think is the whole theme of the episode when it comes to understanding the black experience: generations before those today were so focused on creating a better future for their kids, that some aspects of their relationships were put on the back burner. I think this speaks to a large population of the elder African-American generation. They had to scratch and claw for every little thing they earned, and they wanted nothing more than to shield their children from that. It creates this universal value in the Black population, especially the males, that they needed to provide and build a better future for their kids. I think this episode did a great job of giving you that value without throwing it in your face, but allowing you to enjoy the comedy of how it effects Andre’s current life with his own children.

The third episode I watched of this show really dove into the concept of black identity and what it means to be part of that unique community. The episode starts with Andre and Jr. carrying a school project into his building one day. While walking in the courtyard, they pass another black student and his father. Andre and the father give each other “The Nod,” a way of acknowledging that they see each other and are in solidarity with one another. Jr. and the other boy, however don’t do this. This sends Andre on a mission to show Jr. why it is important to stand in solidarity with other black people, and tries to get him some more black friends so that he can have a sense of community with them. Ultimately, at the end of the episode, Andre realizes that Jr.’s tribe isn’t just black people, but it is nerds, and Jr. does “The Nod” with all of the nerds in the courtyard. He still picks up on some of his black identity, however, bonding with his dad and Pops along the way. This episode really made me think about the notion of identity, and how everyone has their own community. Andre spends the episode trying to give Jr. some of the identity that he is lacking in his daily life. With the kids going to private school, he doesn’t have too many black people to relate to. This lacking stresses the importance to the audience that self-identity is so important. Yes, being treated as equals in society is a goal of the Black population, but they still have the pride in being Black and standing with their community. That sense is something that I as a white person really don’t (and can’t) understand. I feel a strong sense of community with my ethnicity and the Serbian community I am a part of, but the universal feeling of holding true to your racial identity is a notion that white people can never truly be a part of. The show does a great job of explaining this idea, by including the nerd community at the end. It gives those of us watching who are not black a way to relate the feeling of what it means to be in the black community with something we might understand.

I chose to watch this show because I am very much not aware of the black experience. I grew up completely in a white family and I didn’t have much diversity around me either. How could I possibly know this experience?

You can talk about it, explain it all you want, but I know that I will never really understand it. Even watching this show didn’t make me understand the experience, but the portrayal made things a bit more realistic. The creators made the struggles a bit more comical than some other portrayals, and I think that is the genius of the show. Most people today want to focus on the negative and make things so serious, but this show is a way of still showing you the daily struggles of a black family by still being entertaining. It is also an easier pill to swallow, and that might make me sound like I am making light of their struggles by saying it’s difficult for me, a white woman, to accept, but it’s the truth. If this show helps me to better see and understand their struggles, I might just be able to do something about it.

I really enjoyed watching this show this week, and I think I might continue to do so, simply to continue understanding the day to day struggles that a black family goes through.