Snickers withdraws the controversial Aless Gibaja ad and regrets “the misunderstanding"
In the last hours, the ice cream ad Snickers, starring the influencer Aless gibaja, has become a viral phenomenon on social networks due to criticism of his homophobia y plumofobia. The chocolate brand has issued a statement in which they announce that they are withdrawing the spot since their intentions were not to offend any group and that they wanted «convey in a friendly and casual way that hunger can change your character«.
In the twenty seconds that the controversial announcement of Snickers, we can see Aless gibaja with another man in a beach bar, when the waiter enters the scene. Then, the influencer asks for a “sexy orange juice with vitamins A, B and C”Before the stupor face of his companion. Immediately afterwards, the waiter hands him a frozen chocolate bar Snickers and when Hump takes a bite, the young man transforms into a man who complies with all the heteronormative canons of the machirulo. Faced with this conversion, the companion asks him: “Best?”. And the new Aless gibaja answer back: "Better”. The spot concludes with the slogan: “It's not you when you're hungry".
It seems that eating @snickers_es the pen is taken from you and "you're better." But how do you continue to have campaigns like this? 🤮 #Homophobiahttps://t.co/ccdtn7BfAw
- Mario Montes (@mariomnts) August 4, 2021
Plumophobia and homophobia
The networks did not take long to denounce the resounding plumophobia of the ad. "Disgusting, homophobic, heteronormative, plumophobic ...”Are some of the criticisms that the spot received of painful realization. «Homophobic aggressions and those of Snickers they put out an ad ridiculing the pen, in which Aless gibaja He becomes a 'straight normative' man when he eats the chocolate bar«Commented a tweeter. «It seems that eating Snickers the feather is taken from you and now 'you are better'. But how do you continue to have campaigns like this?«, Raised another. «I don't know if they are advertising ice cream or conversion therapyWrote a third.
Even the Minister Irene Montero dedicated a tweet in which he asks «to whom it might seem like a good idea to use homophobia as a business strategy«. Bob Pop neither has he bit his tongue and has tweeted «Hopefully a counter-campaign where we record everyone eating BONES as if they were cocks«.
I wonder to whom it might seem like a good idea to use homophobia as a business strategy.
Our society is diverse and tolerant. Hopefully those who have the power to make decisions about what we see and hear in advertisements and TV shows will learn to be too.
- Irene Montero (@IreneMontero) August 5, 2021
Hopefully a counter-campaign where we record everyone eating BONES as if they were cocks.
- Bob Pop (@BobPopVeTV) August 5, 2021
To misunderstanding the Snickers
The company released a statement in which it apologized and withdrew the ad. "From the brand Snickers we take the rights of equality and inclusion very seriously”, The letter began saying,“and we believe that anyone has the right to show themselves as they are. Therefore, from Snickers we would like to apologize for the misunderstanding that our new advertising campaign may have caused".
"At no time has it been intended to stigmatize or offend any person or group”He continued. "In this specific campaign, the aim was to convey in a friendly and casual way that hunger can change your character.”, They tried to justify. Finally, "We regret any misunderstanding and, in order to avoid spreading a message that could be misinterpreted, we will immediately proceed to remove the campaign".
We only see misunderstandings and misinterpreted messages from the brand.
