The day after the Super Bowl, I came across an article entitled Where Is My Family On TV? In the piece, the author, Jenna Wortham, talks of the Cheerios Super Bowl commercial and how people reacted to it. General Mills, the maker of Cheerios, first uploaded the commercial featuring a family of a black father, white mother, and mixed child, on YouTube. It surprisingly drew nasty and racist criticism and General Mills was forced to delete all the comments. The Super Bowl commercial was a follow up of the first commercial and it provoked similar foul reactions.
As a person of mixed race and who lives in such a diverse area, seeing the commercial didn’t make me think twice. Perhaps my reaction doesn’t speak for the majority of Americans, but it’s difficult for me to understand disapproval of mixed-race Americans. What do you all think?
Here’s the first Cheerios commercial: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kYofm5d5Xdw
And the second one featured during the 2014 Super Bowl: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LKuQrKeGe6g
Alexis, I’m so glad you posted this. I was stunned by the reaction to the Cheerios commercial, especially in 21st-America, where so many people’s backgrounds are so blended. Seems to me this is an issue you would rarely think twice about in NYC, at least in many neighborhoods. But the outcry seemed a reminder of the fact that in many crucial respects, a city like NY is very different from other parts of the country.
Other thoughts?
There’s another example of how biracialism on TV is perceived as transgressive: the great comedy show Key & Peele. According to an essay that appeared in the New Yorker last September, “Key and Peele’s biracialism is central to their comedy, but in a far different way than I’d imagined: it is expansive, not constricting, a Golden Ticket to themes rarely explored on television.”
I never saw the second commercial before, so thank you for sharing! Amazing post!
I’m glad General Mills stood firmly on their stance to represent a biracial family. It’s shocking that individuals would show hatred toward a happy and beautiful family. But I guess it comes with the territory of being a diverse nation. It’d be naive to think that everyone would be kind, caring, and accepting. But it makes me grateful for those individuals who support diversity and justice. Although we’ve made tremendous progress over the years, there is still more to go.
I personally love the commercials and believe they represent the brand well. I hope to see more just like these. Keep up the great work, General Mills!
When I thought about this commercial objectively, I realized how harmless it truly is. I don’t believe that General Mills created the commercial thinking that he was producing this revolutionary, groundbreaking masterpiece. He probably approached the commercial believing that he just advertised an unpopular idea. The strong and common hatred shown by the audience has surprised me and just shows how bigotry still exists. But kudos to General Mills for not backing down!