T-Mobile criticised for ‘sexist’ Super Bowl ads
The ads have been accused of promoting gender stereotypes
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Your support makes all the difference.T-Mobile has been criticised for its Super Bowl ads, which people are describing as “sexist”.
The mobile phone operator debuted four adverts during the game, two of which have been accused by social media users of endorsing gender stereotypes due to the way they portrayed women.
In one, an unnamed person texts someone called “Kristi” asking what they should get for dinner before drafting a series of messages, such as “You’re going to want sushi, aren’t you?”, "Tacos sound good to me", “You should have a girls’ night!” and “Why is it up to me when it’s really up to you?”.
Eventually, they send one that reads: "Whatever you want bae," to which Kristi replies, "Sushi?".
The background music is Fine Young Cannibals’ “She Drives Me Crazy,” which, along with the messages, prompted a backlash.
“Ah yes, the classic joke about how women can’t decide what they want to eat personified through txt. Thanks T-Mobile [sic],” wrote one person on Twitter.
“I feel like that casually sexist ‘ugh, girfriends, so annoying, always wanting sushi not TACOS!’ ad should have been left in 2006,” added another.
"Girlfriends, nag nag nag!!!! am I right? Not letting us go to TACO BELL on date night".
The second ad to come under fire featured another unnamed person send a “Hey whats up [sic]” text to a woman named “Cathy”, to which she responded with a long-winded message about her "journey" and feeling torn between pilates and yoga.
“S/o to@TMobile for making women look insane [sic],” wrote one person on Twitter, while another said the ad made women seem “annoying and exhausting”.
T-Mobile responded on Twitter to one user, who had described both ads as “sexist,”, writing: “We’re grateful you took the time to share your thoughts. We’re a company built on listening to our customers and that will never change.”
The Independent has contacted T-Mobile for comment.
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