Keller @ Large: Pepsi's Failed Ad May Have United Us
BOSTON (CBS) - Here are some fun facts to amaze and amuse your co-workers or classmates with today: did you know that Pepsi-Cola has been around since 1893, even though in the early years it was known as "Brad's Drink"?
You can't make this stuff up.
But it does show what a nice long run of popularity Pepsi has enjoyed, and that raises a question – what did that poor tonic ever do to deserve the ad they just made for it?
Picture Kendall Jenner, a junior Kardashian, modeling in a blonde wig.
Protesters march by, carrying a sign that says "join the conversation," something never written on a protest sign in the history of protest.
Jenner and a couple other millennial models are swept up in the alleged excitement of the march and join in. Kendall even ditches her wig and lipstick, as if!
Next thing you know, uh-oh, the Join the Conversation Movement comes face to face with a line of unsmiling police.
But after a few tense moments of modeling, Kendall turns those frowns upside-down by handing a model-quality cop a Pepsi.
The ad makers say they just wanted to show people "coming together in a spirit of harmony," but they should have gotten a consult from Dr. Martin Luther King's daughter first.
"If only Daddy would have known about the power of #Pepsi," she tweeted.
Buried with criticism, Pepsi has apologized and killed the ad campaign.
But maybe it did achieve their goal after all – for a moment at least, they united us.
Listen to Jon's commentary:
