Heineken draws fire for ‘terribly racist’ ad
Heineken pulled a “Sometimes Lighter is Better” commercial for its Heineken Light beer after some criticized it as being racist.
In the 30-second advertisement, a bartender slides a bottle of Heineken Light toward a woman. The beer passes several men and women of color before reaching her, and then the statement “Sometimes Lighter is Better” appears.
Among those criticizing the commercial: Chance the Rapper. The Grammy winner voiced his dismay on Twitter, calling it “terribly racist.” He also questioned whether brands are purposely creating racist advertising to get attention.
“I think some companies are purposely putting out noticeably racist ads so they can get more views,” he tweeted, adding that “Im ... just noticing how often it happens and I think they baiting consumers ... Like I didnt wanna tweet about it so bad ... but its like how can u not.”
Heineken removed the spot from TV and online, the company told BBC News, which was among the first to report on the ad.
“For decades, Heineken has developed diverse marketing that shows there’s more that unites us than divides us,” a Heineken spokesperson told the site in a statement. “While we feel the ad is referencing our Heineken Light beer, we missed the mark, are taking the feedback to heart and will use this to influence future campaigns.”
While some online said people were reading too much into the ad, others considered the ad as at least subliminally racist. Heineken gained acclaim for another ad, released last year, called “Worlds Apart,” which brought together pairs of strangers with differing political views.
Heineken’s commercial is just the latest brand cited for insensitivity. International retailer H&M lost celebrity endorsers the Weeknd and rapper G-Easy — and faced online criticism from Lebron James and others — in January for an ad in the U.K. featuring a black boy modeling a sweatshirt emblazoned with the words “coolest monkey in the jungle.”