what sydney sweeney’s jeans say about us
a cultural critique on ads, anger, and the fetishization of outrage
This American Eagle and Sydney Sweeney controversy has set social media ablaze over the last few days. At first, I was beyond confused about what they were being accused of. Eugenics? Nazism? I thought, No way. These people are dramatic.
Until a TikTok comment broke it down for me like I was five years old—and then it clicked.
I’m offering American Eagle the benefit of the doubt. Do I think it was intended as white supremacist propaganda? No. Does it read that way? I can see how it does.
The camera pans up Sweeney’s body as she wiggles around, buttoning her pants. When it lands on her face, she proclaims, My jeans are blue. And then American Eagle proudly announces: SYDNEY SWEENEY HAS GREAT JEANS.
The blonde-haired, blue-eyed beauty queen has great “jeans”… right. I can think of one group of people who would agree.
My heart goes out to the poor social media marketing intern who probably pitched this idea in a meeting. They likely thought it was clever, super witty, and maybe even got a high-five from their boss. But it’s fascinating that this passed through so many desks and no one stopped to think, Wait…
Kendall Jenner’s Pepsi advertisement was quite possibly the most unintentionally hilarious ad of the 2010s. The premise was idiotic: Kendall (a white woman) hands a cop a Pepsi during a protest, and suddenly everyone cheers for diversity and peace. Mind you, this was released during the height of the Black Lives Matter movement.
The backlash was swift—so swift that the ad was pulled after 48 hours, and Pepsi issued an apology to both the public and Kendall Jenner.
The conversation got so bad that I remember feeling sorry for Kendall.
We are culturally walking a very thin line. It’s not unreasonable for the average internet user to make these assumptions. Every day, we’re bombarded with right-wing extremism that borders on fascism. We have people in our government who would rather watch it all crumble if it means lining their pockets faster. And we have organizations platforming these individuals, handing them a megaphone.
The producers of Jubilee have come under fire recently for this exact issue.
As a country, we’ve reached a point where this stops being funny. It is alarming that the individuals in this video have no issue admitting to Nazism. Hasan wasn’t debating far-right extremists; he was debating Holocaust deniers and Nazi sympathizers. The rage of these extremists is palpable in the video. Two guests, in particular, stood out: “Connor,” who cackles maniacally like a Looney Tunes villain, and another white man who told Hasan to “get the hell out of here (America).” This second guest’s face was entirely contorted with rage and anxiety. It was unnerving to watch someone become so angry over a misunderstanding.
And—not to defend a man—but it was incredibly inappropriate of Jubilee to subject Hasan to this debacle.
And before someone says, It’s a debate…? No. The Holocaust did happen, and real people were murdered. Hasan even refuses to continue halfway through the video after a guest proudly states his allegiance to fascism. Implying that any of these things are “up for debate”—which is exactly what Jubilee is doing—is unethical. You cannot debate:
A) fascism, and
B) facts.
To the untrained eye, Jubilee is participating in harmless YouTube debate hoopla. It’s purely for entertainment value. And to that I say: sure. These buffoons are a tad amusing. People who likely struggled to pass American History think they’re experts on our current political landscape.
However, outrage is the new clickbait, and the right-wing debate space has perfected it. These spaces are not about open dialogue—they’re designed to push your emotional buttons, to titillate anger and disgust. It’s not about ideas or “meeting in the middle.” It’s pornography.
The titles read as follows:
BIMBO GETS OWNED.
304 GETS DESTROYED.
These titles are meant to spark that gut reaction: Yeah, fuck that bitch. You click, expecting to watch some big-breasted OnlyFans model get “owned” by the “superior” male. These platforms frame these arguments as though they’re contributing to some wider cultural critique, but they’re just engagement farming. You click, you reshare, and they rack up views. Tucker Carlson gets dumped from Fox News and suddenly becomes a “serious journalist.” In late-stage capitalism, it’s all about the money. And poor schmucks like us are quick to hand it over.
For other reasons I won’t mention (but will heavily imply), I predict Sydney Sweeney will likely come out of this “controversy” unscathed. American Eagle will quietly pull the ad and won’t issue an apology. In the age of “anti-wokeness,” people find this more annoying than they do a moral failing.
I suspect this tidal wave of rage-bait will only swell. It will only recede when it stops making money. Until then, we’ll be forced to watch more tone-deaf ads, more women being TRIGGERED or DESTROYED, and Jubilee continuing to platform Nazis for a click. The fascist normalization cycle rinses and repeats.
If this made you feel something (or made you argue with your phone),
share it with a friend who watches award shows like it’s the Super Bowl.
💌 New here? Start here | 🌀 Meet the girl behind the gossip