Controversy erupted over social media sites earlier this year regarding the depiction of an interracial family in a nationwide Cheerios commercial. Originally aired on television, the 30 second advertisement attracted positive reviews from many viewers. However, once the ad was uploaded to YouTube, racial comments and offensive slurs were used to describe the diverse cast. Despite the controversy, General Mills announced that they will continue to air the commercial and support the idea that families come in many different forms.
Positively impacting their brand and management, Cheerios has demonstrated good corporate ethics in the sense that they continue to support the company’s core values and hold firm to the wholesome image of their company. They have proven to not be easily influenced by the mob mentality of the general public and in many ways have become an ideal model for companies whose ethics are twisted to meet different expectations. In my opinion, General Mills made the right decision to support families of different ethnicities as well as to support visible minorities because society is constantly evolving and the public needs to learn to accept and welcome everyone regardless of appearance or race.
Among the top-profiting companies in the business sector, many still display stereotypes in their marketing that reflect segregation among different ethnicities. As the final screen of the Cheerios commercial suggests, just “love”.
Image is a screenshot from original Cheerios commercial on Youtube.