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Episode: REPLAY: American Eagle: Jeans, Genes, and Controversy

Date: December 30, 2025
Host: Gamut Podcast Network
Panelists: Aaron (Host), Lola Bakari (Marketing Strategist & Author), Melissa (Operations Expert), Kadira (Culture & CSR Analyst)

Episode Overview

This episode examines the recent controversy surrounding American Eagle's Sydney Sweeney ad campaign, which sparked backlash over alleged insensitive messaging. The panel—drawing from their outspokenness and professional expertise in marketing, culture, and corporate governance—dives into American Eagle’s decisions, the wider implications for brands facing cultural firestorms, and provides a playbook for how to navigate (and possibly fix) such PR crises. They emphasize the foundational question every brand must face in controversy: Should a company defend, ignore, or double down?

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Setting the Scene: Why American Eagle, Why Now?

• Brand Context (03:11–05:58)
  • Melissa recounts AE's journey from a staple mall brand focused on affordable, trendy denim, to launching Aerie: a massively successful, body-positive sub-brand.
  • AE is now a $5B business, but faces declining mall traffic, changing Gen Z shopping habits, shrinking margins, and mounting pressure to resonate with a highly diverse, value-driven customer base.
  • Notable stat: Gen Z customers are three times more likely than Millennials to boycott after company missteps.

The Sydney Sweeney Ad & The "Genes" Controversy

• What Happened (03:59–06:46)
  • AE launched an ad with Sydney Sweeney: "You’ve got the genes, we’ve got the jeans," sparking outrage over eugenics-adjacent messaging ("genes" vs "jeans") and concerns about inclusivity.
  • Competitor Responses: Levi’s quickly pivoted with a “Beyoncé has great jeans” campaign; Old Navy highlighted diversity in their own wordplay ads.
  • Melissa: "It wasn't just one bad ad... It's about whether AE really gets the customer they're trying to reach today." (05:36)

Marketing, Culture & Leadership Breakdown

• Decentering Yourself as a Marketer (06:46–11:29)

  • Lola: Good marketers must “decenter” themselves and focus on the consumer. The Sweeney ad failed here—AE already knows inclusivity drives business (Aerie’s success), so why pull back now?
  • Quote: "This isn't about...what middle aged white men think about Sydney Sweeney... does she as an individual connect with AE's target audience... the most diverse generations in history?" (07:16)
  • Groupthink and internal comfort zones (not the customer) likely drove the decision. Financially and culturally short-sighted.

• The Employee Perspective & Corporate Responsibility (11:29–13:40)

  • Kadira: Employees are key stakeholders. “Do our employees still want to work for a company that is putting out slogans like this?” (12:05)
  • Modern companies must align internal culture, values, and external messaging—lack of meaningful employee and community consultation is inexcusable.

The PR and Crisis Response (13:40–17:32)

• Intentional Provocation or Ignorance?

  • Lola: PR firm was present. Executives “went on a premature victory lap” touting the campaign’s provocativeness—clearly, it was supposed to stir.
  • Quote: “They’re winking at each other. We really had fun with this one. They're pretty much telling us that they meant for us to go where we went.” (14:10)
  • Either intentional or ignorant—both troubling.

• Shock Value & Viral Attention

  • Panel: Not all virality is good. Attention alone isn’t a win if it alienates customers, employees, or long-term investors.
  • Lola: “Not all attention is good attention. Some attention is terrible attention.” (18:00)
  • Cancel culture is a real tool; superficial apologies or delays breed distrust.

Brand Responsibility & The Path Forward

• Accountability & Authenticity Beat Spin (20:30–23:42)

  • Melissa: DEIB (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Belonging) is a proven revenue driver. Companies that lean into real inclusion outperform—see Fenty Beauty, Patagonia.
  • AE’s unresponsiveness is hurting their brand and bottom line.

• How Brands Should Respond (23:42–25:35)

  • Lola: Don’t leave audiences in suspense or get defensive. Open genuine two-way communications instead of fauxpologies or dodging.
  • Quote: "Cancellation happens when you don't communicate...being canceled online is really also easily reframed as a call for conversation." (23:43)
  • Proactively engage, acknowledge concerns (without making new legal liabilities), and listen.

• Long-Term Change Over Short-Term News Cycles (26:47–28:36)

  • Real stakeholder management means “primarily listening” (26:47), empowering diverse voices, and operationalizing values—not just posturing.

Solutions & Playbook for “Fixing” American Eagle

1. Own Up & Acknowledge Harm

• Immediate internal and external conversations—not evasion.
• Statement should demonstrate recognition, remorse, and specific intent to repair (as per Robert Livingston’s framework).
• Skip the “fauxpology”—“I’m sorry you were offended” won’t cut it.

2. Empower True Diverse Decision-Making

• Diversity isn’t a checkbox or optics exercise. Build structural and cultural power for underrepresented voices.
• “Nothing for us, without us,” applied both in creative and decision-making processes. (31:26)
• Prevent retaliation and truly empower those raising red flags.

3. Align Actions with Brand Values

• Read and operationalize AE’s own stated values: “AEO celebrates the diversity of one for the inclusion of many.”
• Lola reads AEO’s value statement: “Our values are at the center of every decision, every product, in every interaction... Come in. Be you.” (45:46)
• Involve frontline teams, not just top execs or external PR teams.

4. Audit Creative Process & Build in Safeguards

• Diversity checks and crisis simulations before campaigns launch.
• Test messaging with both employees and target communities.

5. Address Vendor and Supply Chain Influence

• Evaluate external partners (ad agencies, PR) for alignment with brand values and readiness to prevent/spot cultural missteps.

6. Remember the Numbers: Pragmatism Over Ego

• Shocking campaigns might get attention, but ongoing negative press and alienation hurts long-term.
• Shareholder value comes from sustainable, inclusive growth, not one-off viral moments.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “This isn't about...what middle aged white men think about Sydney Sweeney... the question is, does she as an individual connect with AE's target audience as a whole, in a world where Gen Z and A are the most diverse in history?” —Lola (07:16)
• “If their argument is ‘Oh, we didn’t think anyone would think anything provocative,’ then either they're lying—or they should be replaced by the board with people more culturally literate.” —Lola (15:08)
• “Cancellation happens when you don't communicate.” —Lola (23:42)
• “DEIB and inclusivity is not just a trend. It's a proven revenue strategy.” —Melissa (20:30)
• “Not all attention is good attention. Some attention is terrible attention.” —Lola (18:00)
• “Nothing for us, without us.” —Kadira (31:26)
• AEO’s values statement: “AEO celebrates the diversity of one for the inclusion of many. Come in. Be you.” —Read by Lola (45:46)
• “We’re not saying pepper your executive team with people of all different colors and backgrounds and then have the same [decision maker] at the top who may not understand the importance of giving those people agency and control.” —Lola (32:58)
• “It wasn't a blip. It was a symptom of an illness that will continue to affect them if they don't address it.” —Lola (34:59)

Important Timestamps for Key Segments

• 00:00–03:11 – Introduction & set-up; what happened with the controversial campaign.
• 03:11–05:58 – American Eagle brand history, context, and the ad’s immediate fallout.
• 06:46–11:29 – Marketing’s role: centering the customer, groupthink, diversity.
• 11:29–13:40 – CSR, employee impact, and stakeholder alignment.
• 13:40–17:32 – PR missteps: intentional provocation vs. ignorance; shock marketing.
• 18:46–22:19 – Cancel culture, accountability, and the power of authentic response.
• 23:00–25:29 – Suggested approaches for engagement and communication.
• 28:07–32:58 – Building diversity, empowerment, and internal accountability.
• 42:35–47:59 – Panel’s playbook: specific steps to “fix” AE and regain trust.
• 45:46–47:59 – AE’s value statement read aloud; closing advice.
• 48:56–50:26 – Panel agrees: is it fixable and what’s at stake?

Flow & Tone

• Conversational, direct, irreverent-yet-thoughtful (“If anyone can help us, it’s Lola Bakari…”).
• Blunt about marketing-driven mistakes; quick to call out performative behaviors and lack of true accountability.
• Encourages action over intention, discussion over silence, and humility over ego.

Did They Fix It?

Yes—with caveats.
The panel agrees American Eagle can come back, but only with deep accountability, true empowerment of diverse voices, meaningful operational change, and a willingness to be vulnerable and transparent. Superficial efforts or further evasion will only deepen the rift.

Lola sums it up:
“There’s never any brand that can’t come back from a faux pas.” (49:03)
But, she adds—they must beware the lure of loud but unrepresentative “retro” culture and focus on inclusivity with integrity.

Final Words

If American Eagle (and brands like it) listen, learn, and change in line with these recommendations, they’re welcome. If not, the panel won’t be surprised when these issues return.

Want more from Lola?
Find her on LinkedIn under #restrictionsresponsiblemarketing or read her book:
Responsible Marketing: How to Create an Authentic and Inclusive Marketing Strategy.

Listen to full episodes at: wefixeditpod.com