
President Donald Trump has an opinion on many
things, and this week it would seem to be advertising.
The ad critic-in-chief took shots at Jaguar Land Rover, which was in the news for naming a new CEO. Trump also praised
American Eagle and its controversial Sydney Sweeney campaign after learning that Sweeney is reportedly a Republican.
"Trump said on social media on Monday that JLR was in
‘absolute turmoil’ and its boss had left the firm ‘in disgrace,’” according to the BBC. “The president
also called its recent marketing campaign ‘stupid’ and ‘woke.’ JLR boss Adrian Mardell, who announced his retirement last week after 35 years at the firm, led
controversial moves to ditch Jaguar's iconic cat logo and focus on producing electric cars.”
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JLR released the controversial 30-second social media clip with the tagline
“Copy Nothing” before the unveiling last November of a new electric concept car.
“Shouldn’t they have learned a lesson from Bud Lite which went
Woke and essentially destroyed, in a short campaign, the Company,” Trump posted.“The market cap destruction has been unprecedented, with BILLIONS OF DOLLARS SO FOOLISHLY LOST.”
The Jaguar ad showcases various ethnicities of people fashionably dressed as bold statements like: “break moulds” and “live vivid” overlay the screen, notes Vibe.
“JLR’s rebrand and advertising campaign, which
did not feature a vehicle, immediately drew more than 160m views on social media, but also brought an online backlash late last year, including from Republicans and rightwing commentators in
the U.S.,” according to The Guardian.
With all that is going on in the world of cars, tt seems odd that the U.S. president is so fixated on what is happening with
Jaguar.
"Given the struggles that even domestic automakers like Ford are experiencing right now, arguably President Trump should be spending a bit more time worrying about what he's doing to
the automotive industry through tariffs and a little less time worrying about a niche brand's redesign," notes Jalopnik.
Meanwhile, Trump said he loves Sydney Sweeney and her American Eagle Outfitters jeans ad.
“Trump, in an Aug. 4 post on Truth Social, his social media app,
heaped additional praise on the actress,” according to USA Today. “‘Sydney Sweeney, a registered Republican, has the HOTTEST ad out there. It’s for American Eagle, and the jeans are
flying off the shelves. Go get ‘em Sydney!" Trump posted.”
American Eagle Outfitters' stock jump by 22% after Trump's post.