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Dr. Pepper Ten Commercial Gets a Thumbs Down |
  By Lucy Rios My ten year old daughter came home from spending the weekend at her dad’s and told me stories about the fun times she had playing with her cat, playing games on her computer, and hanging out with her dad. She described all the things she did and didn’t get to do as she is an avid storyteller. So if men choose to drink types of diet soda other than Dr. Pepper Ten, they aren’t real men? Aren’t men already limited in the ways they can express themselves without soda being thrown onto the list? The stereotypical way Dr. Pepper is portraying “real men” does not grant men permission to express their whole selves and all of their identities. For example, where do loving, nurturing fathers and partners fit into this depiction? What about artists, teachers, entrepreneurs, or religious leaders for that matter? Aren’t they real men? This commercial narrows our notions of manhood and fails to include the diversity of the real men that make up our communities. The only positive outcomes that I’ve seen come out of this commercial are discussions about unhealthy gender stereotyping and against this type of advertising. Many people have rated this commercial with thumbs down on You Tube, and while there were some immature comments telling folks that it’s just a commercial, many have been men who disagree with Dr. Pepper Ten’s messaging and aren’t shy posting about it. “I think this commercial? is stupid. And I'm a guy. Am I less of a man because I watch my caloric intake? So when 66% of American men are overweight, I try to stay fit and I am indirectly emasculated.... Not cool.” News media outlets like USA Today criticized Dr. Pepper Ten’s Facebook page which includes “manly” quizzes and games where men get to destroy traditionally female objects like high heels. I hope Dr. Pepper Ten gets the message – this type of advertising is not acceptable. If only the amount of money that went into producing this commercial were used to promote positive messages and work that’s being done to challenge traditional attitudes and beliefs about what it means to be a man. Imagine that instead, my daughter and her dad saw a commercial promoting an initiative like Training Camps for Life, where teens critically analyze media and discuss respect, equality, and male privilege in an effort to prevent domestic violence during the football game. What might that conversation have been like? What impression would that have left on my ten year old daughter to see the NFL Players Association, partner with the Verizon Foundation and A Call to Men to end violence against women and promote gender equity and healthy relationships. Maybe she would have inspired to see men and women, boys and girls, and powerful organizations and corporations working to create a more just world. Instead she was left wondering why people make commercials like this one when they know it’s harmful. I’m left with the same question.
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