Celebrity Endorsements: Selling Illness
Beyonce’s body is a gift from the universe. It is perfection. Curvy yet toned, firm yet supple. It is glorious enough to make grown men (and women) across the world shed a tear. But this article isn’t about Beyonce's body. It's about what her body represents. Beyonce is the face of Pepsi. Like many other famous celebrities, she has succumbed to big business pressure and thrown her values and morals out the window for a cool 50-million dollar paycheck.
You might be wondering why this matters. Beyonce is the queen of pop after all, and can basically do no wrong. Well, it matters because Beyonce is a global role model to people of all ages. It matters because America has an obesity problem so astounding that the current generation may not live as long as their parents, and also because 68 percent of the American population is overweight. It matters because it is a scientific impossibility that Beyonce is guzzling back empty, sugar ridden calories in her day-to-day life and still managing to keep her majestic figure.
Celebrities need to stop telling the youth lies, but it isn’t just American children they are after. Lebron James, Michael Jordan, and Kobe Bryant are the faces of McDonald’s, Marshawn Lynch for Skittles, and Taylor Swift for Coca Cola. What do all of these people have in common? They are selling toxic waste to an entire population that desperately needs a health intervention. Adults and children alike admire their talent and success and cannot help but buy into what they are promoting. This has been going on for years, and the American population continues growing, and growing, and growing.
(Photo: AdvSoc)
In Katie Couric’s documentary Fed Up, she accuses the food industry of political lobbying and draws attention to the effects an absurd sugar intake has had on the youth of America. What she touches on only briefly, but what has stayed with me, is the fact that in 2015 when celebrities are fighting for women’s rights and equality, gay and transgender issues, and openly supporting atheism, we still see famous faces splashed across billboards diving head first into a Big Mac.
(Photo: Al Jazeera)
These celebs are in the business of selling themselves. They are promoting their image to increasing their bank accounts, and in turn sending mixed messages. People see stars like Shaquille O'Neal and Beyonce as icons. They care about their fans and care about giving back to the youth. But why have they not realized they could make a major change in the nation by simply boycotting fast food? Both Beyonce and Shaq stood by Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move campaign (who herself has changed her tune from going after the food industry to emphasizing the exercise aspect of her campaign), then got a payout from the new era of addict dealers.
Shaq and Beyonce are not the only culprits. The list goes on and on, including previously mentioned Taylor Swift and Rihanna who adamantly respect their fans. Lebron James and Kobe Bryant who spend time giving back to local communities. International icons such as One Direction and David Beckham and intergenerational icons like Elton John. They could all give a giant middle finger to the industry that is poisoning the global community.
Companies like McDonald’s, Burger King, Coca Cola, Pepsi, and Skittles have spent billions of dollars over several decades convincing people that a “well-rounded” diet should include food and beverages made up of mostly sugar. People who consume just one or two sugar-sweetened drinks a day have a 26 percent greater risk of developing type 2 diabetes than people who rarely drink these beverages. Men who average one sweetened beverage a day have a 20 percent higher risk of having a heart attack than men who rarely consume them. These celebrities need to stop convincing everyone to eat food that isn't food. If influential men and women don’t withdraw their support from these big brands, society is going to continue along the short dark road to diabetes, heart disease, and death.
Pepsi’s slogan “Live for now” couldn’t be more accurate. Live for now because our products are shaving years off your life.
