WEBVTT - The Sydney Sweeney controversy, explained

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<v Speaker 1>Before we jump into today's deep dive, we have a

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<v Speaker 1>on to today's episode.

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<v Speaker 2>Already, and this is the Daily Art.

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<v Speaker 3>This is the Daily ohs oh, now it makes sense.

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<v Speaker 3>Good morning, and welcome to the Daily OS. It's Wednesday,

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<v Speaker 3>the sixth of August. I'm Emma Gillespie.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm Billy fit Simon's, a.

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<v Speaker 3>New denim ad featuring actress Sidney Sweeney, has sparked major

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<v Speaker 3>controversy over recent weeks over what critics say are references

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<v Speaker 3>to white supremacist messaging. The ad has divided opinion online

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<v Speaker 3>and drawn responses from major political figures, including Donald Trump.

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<v Speaker 3>The controversy centers around the language used in the campaign

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<v Speaker 3>and questions about beauty standards in advertising. Today, we are

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<v Speaker 3>breaking down everything you need to know about this viral ad,

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<v Speaker 3>from what happened to why people are upset, the political response,

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<v Speaker 3>and the ongoing fallout. Billy I think to start off with,

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<v Speaker 3>most of our audience do know who Sidney Sweeney is,

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<v Speaker 3>But just in case for anyone listening who doesn't, what

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<v Speaker 3>do we need to know about her? So?

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<v Speaker 1>Sidney Sweeney is an American actress. She is best known

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<v Speaker 1>for her roles in Euphoria and also in The White

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<v Speaker 1>Lotus season one. Yes, well I didn't watch that season,

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<v Speaker 1>so I'm actually not that familiar Sidney Sweeney. But what

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<v Speaker 1>I do know her from is the film Anyone But You,

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<v Speaker 1>which was filmed in Australia, And so I feel like

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<v Speaker 1>a lot of Australians know her, if not from those

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<v Speaker 1>TV she's.

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<v Speaker 3>Not from those massive successes. They might know her from

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<v Speaker 3>many month for You, but she spent many months here.

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<v Speaker 3>She filmed in Sydney for a long time. That is correct.

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<v Speaker 3>Maybe what is lesser known for an Australian audience though,

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<v Speaker 3>is American Eagle. What's American Eagle?

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<v Speaker 2>Yes, so they are a fashion brand.

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<v Speaker 1>They produce jeans and denim, and I think for the

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<v Speaker 1>purposes of this, that's basically what.

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<v Speaker 2>You need to know about them. They are a jeens brand.

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<v Speaker 3>Okay, now let's start with the ad itself. What can

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<v Speaker 3>you see in this ad. What is it showing?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, so there are multiple different ads. They all show

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<v Speaker 1>Sydney Sweeney. Sometimes she's lying down, she's walking around, she's

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<v Speaker 1>wearing the jeans and all of the ads. Here is

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<v Speaker 1>some audio from just one of those ads. Gans are

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<v Speaker 1>passed down from parents to aspring, often determining traits like

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<v Speaker 1>her color, personality and eve an eye color.

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<v Speaker 2>My gens are blue, Sydney's Tweeney hasburg Keynes.

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<v Speaker 1>And you'll hear there the word play with jeans as

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<v Speaker 1>in j E A n s ye and jeans as

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<v Speaker 1>in g E N E S. I don't know how

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<v Speaker 1>that sounds for an audio platform, but genetics, Yes, I

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<v Speaker 1>think you get where I'm going.

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<v Speaker 2>And so it's a play on words there.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, again, for anyone who's not familiar with Sidney Sweeney,

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<v Speaker 1>she is a white woman. She has blonde hair, and

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<v Speaker 1>she has blue eyes, which they reference in the audio

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<v Speaker 1>that you just heard. And I think you can pretty

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<v Speaker 1>safely assume that the inference in this ad is that

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<v Speaker 1>she is a conventionally attractive woman, and they're really playing

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<v Speaker 1>into that here.

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I would go as far to say as Sydney

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<v Speaker 3>Sweeney is a famously conventionally beautiful woman exactly. So there's

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<v Speaker 3>that play on words there, genes as in denim jens

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<v Speaker 3>and genes as in genetics.

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<v Speaker 1>That's a better way of explaining it than the spelling.

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<v Speaker 2>That I did, Billy.

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<v Speaker 3>Why are people upset about the ad?

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah?

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<v Speaker 1>So critics on social media say that the great genes

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<v Speaker 1>for as in the genetics phrasing, combined with Sweeney's appearance,

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<v Speaker 1>really echoes white supremacist language that promotes eugenics. Now, eugenics

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<v Speaker 1>is a debunked theory that claims selective breeding can create.

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<v Speaker 2>A superior race. You likely would have heard it when

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<v Speaker 2>it comes to Nazis.

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<v Speaker 1>It's really an idea that fueled Nazi ideology and it

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<v Speaker 1>remains popular among alt rite groups today. To give you

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<v Speaker 1>an idea of kind of the commentary that is happening

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<v Speaker 1>online around this ad, one person said the American Eagles

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<v Speaker 1>ad wasn't just a commercial, It was a love letter

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<v Speaker 1>to white nationalism and eugenic fantasies, and Sydney Sweeney knew it.

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<v Speaker 1>Another one that I saw on TikTok this has been everywhere.

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<v Speaker 1>On TikTok, I saw a comment that said, when those

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<v Speaker 1>traits are consistently uplifted as genetic excellence. We know where

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<v Speaker 1>this leads. This just echoes pseudoscientific language of racial super periority,

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<v Speaker 1>and so the controversy is essentially about accusations that the

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<v Speaker 1>ad is making a subtle reference or even an explicit

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<v Speaker 1>reference to these harmful theories of eugenics and white supremacy.

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<v Speaker 1>There was also criticism for the sexualization of Sidney Sweeney

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<v Speaker 1>in the ad, but I think that was kind of

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<v Speaker 1>a side part, and the main thing here really is

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<v Speaker 1>the racial undertones or the accusations of racism at play here.

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<v Speaker 3>Okay. I think it's also probably worth noting that American

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<v Speaker 3>Eagle as a brand, I mean, it's literally in the

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<v Speaker 3>name that there's this kind of American nationalism, this very

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<v Speaker 3>like US sort of tone, the red, white, and blue,

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<v Speaker 3>the eagle that is an iconic bird associated with US imagery,

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<v Speaker 3>and I mean the relationship between America and neo Nazism.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, exactly.

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<v Speaker 1>It's really painting her as this ideal American woman, and

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<v Speaker 1>there is of course a very problematic history that comes

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<v Speaker 1>with that.

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<v Speaker 3>So what has the response been like from the brand?

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<v Speaker 3>Have we heard from American Eagle?

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<v Speaker 1>We have, so they actually didn't respond for a little while.

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<v Speaker 1>So these ads first were published on the twenty third

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<v Speaker 1>of July, and they didn't say anything for more than

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<v Speaker 1>a week. We only heard from them over the most

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<v Speaker 1>recent weekends.

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<v Speaker 3>And as we sometimes see with these stories, that silence

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<v Speaker 3>kind of fed into this theory online or this kind

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<v Speaker 3>of conspiracy that has blown up because of that silence.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, and I think people didn't know what they were

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<v Speaker 1>going to say. You never know, you know, are they

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<v Speaker 1>going to issue an apology or are they going to

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<v Speaker 1>double down on the messaging and kind of say that

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<v Speaker 1>they have nothing to apologize for. I would say out

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<v Speaker 1>of those two, they did the latter. So in the

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<v Speaker 1>statement that they posted over the weekend, they said, Sidney

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<v Speaker 1>Sweeney has great genes, is and always was about the genes,

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<v Speaker 1>her genes, her story, her genes with a J, jeans

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<v Speaker 1>with a J. They also added, great genes look good

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<v Speaker 1>on everybody. So they're really maintaining that this was or

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<v Speaker 1>they're claiming that this was purely about the clothing and

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<v Speaker 1>there was no deeper messaging here. I will say that,

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<v Speaker 1>like you said, m in that statement, they spelled genes

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<v Speaker 1>with a J, and they didn't acknowledge the ads that

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<v Speaker 1>do spell genes with a G. So in at least

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<v Speaker 1>one of the ads, they do explicitly spell genes with

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<v Speaker 1>a G. How it's spelt for genetics and then they

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<v Speaker 1>cross it out and replace it with.

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<v Speaker 2>The other genes.

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<v Speaker 3>Okay, so it seems like they're trying to brush that

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<v Speaker 3>off as like a harmless wordplay marketing line. What about

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<v Speaker 3>Sydney Sweeney, She's a popular global star. She's especially popular

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<v Speaker 3>as an actress with younger audiences because of shows like Euphoria,

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<v Speaker 3>which is really a show for young people.

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, she said, she hasn't said anything, so she's remained

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<v Speaker 1>silent on the controversy. That doesn't mean that she hasn't

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<v Speaker 1>been out in public, so she has still been posting

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<v Speaker 1>to her Instagram. She's also been at at least one

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<v Speaker 1>public event so earlier this week she went to a

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<v Speaker 1>red carpet for one of her films. So she has

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<v Speaker 1>been out and about, but she has not addressed this controversy.

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<v Speaker 3>That is kind of surprising in this day and age.

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<v Speaker 3>I guess when celebrities feel so accessible, when we all

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<v Speaker 3>have social media and we all follow celebrities on social media,

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<v Speaker 3>it feels almost like it would be harder to not

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<v Speaker 3>address it. So I think that that probably says a lot. Billy.

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<v Speaker 3>As you mentioned, this has been around for a few weeks,

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<v Speaker 3>this story has been bubbling, but I have seen that

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<v Speaker 3>it's now entered the political sphere. How did that happen?

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<v Speaker 1>Yeah, so this isn't the first time that Sweeney has

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<v Speaker 1>faced controversy or backlash from her fan Now you might

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<v Speaker 1>remember I don't remember this, but you might remember that

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<v Speaker 1>in twenty twenty two, she shared pictures of her mum's

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<v Speaker 1>sixtieth birthday and you could see in those snaps that

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<v Speaker 1>she uploaded to her Instagram that some of the members

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<v Speaker 1>of her family were wearing make America Great Again style hats. Okay,

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<v Speaker 1>and they read make sixty great again. So just another

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<v Speaker 1>play on words in a very different style that a.

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<v Speaker 3>Play on a very loaded Republican Trumpian mantra.

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<v Speaker 2>Yes exactly.

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<v Speaker 1>And Sweeney did acknowledge the backlash at that time, and

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<v Speaker 1>she criticized it. She said that people had turned quote

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<v Speaker 1>an innocent celebration into an absurd political statement. Now you

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<v Speaker 1>might be wondering, what does this have to do with

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<v Speaker 1>the current controversy. So, after all this went down with

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<v Speaker 1>American Eagle. Some people online did some digging around and

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<v Speaker 1>they found more of a connection between Sydney Sweeney and

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<v Speaker 1>the Republican Party. So they actually found that Sidney Sweeney

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<v Speaker 1>registered as a Republican voter in the months prior to

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<v Speaker 1>Donald Trump being elected for the second time.

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<v Speaker 3>So that was just last year exactly, So following that

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<v Speaker 3>kind of controversy that she spoke out against about her

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<v Speaker 3>mum's birthday. Then sometime passes and it's the lead up

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<v Speaker 3>to the US election last year, and Sidney Sweeney registers

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<v Speaker 3>formally as a Republican voter. But I do think it's

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<v Speaker 3>worth pointing out that this is one part of a

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<v Speaker 3>developing controversy. That doesn't mean that we're saying anything about

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<v Speaker 3>her political preferences, and that doesn't mean that her political

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<v Speaker 3>preferences make her a Nazi.

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<v Speaker 1>No, And again we're not saying that, but I guess

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<v Speaker 1>that her fans or people on the internet are criticizing

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<v Speaker 1>her for her political decisions, and that's made a big

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<v Speaker 1>part of why this has continued to be a big

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<v Speaker 1>story in the days and weeks after this ad was

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<v Speaker 1>first published.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, that makes sense, it makes absolute sense.

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<v Speaker 3>It's also interesting and I think speaks to the current

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<v Speaker 3>US political landscape where maybe ten or twenty years ago,

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<v Speaker 3>if we found out that an artist or an entertainer

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<v Speaker 3>was a quote unquote Republican, I don't think it damaged

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<v Speaker 3>their brand or reputation as much as we've seen it

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<v Speaker 3>damage the reputation of modern and contemporary performers and artists.

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah.

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<v Speaker 3>I mean case in point, Donald Trump struggling to find

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<v Speaker 3>names for people to perform at his inauguration, and the

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<v Speaker 3>Wikipedia page with a growing list of artists who have

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<v Speaker 3>protested him playing their songs at his events. So there

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<v Speaker 3>is definitely a political and a social conversation about the

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<v Speaker 3>impact of identifying as a Republican. In twenty twenty five.

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<v Speaker 1>It's definitely a different political landscape that everyone's playing in.

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<v Speaker 3>So tell me about Donald Trump weighing in on this.

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<v Speaker 3>How did he find out? What has he said?

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<v Speaker 1>So he was asked about that by a reporter just

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<v Speaker 1>as he was about to get on to Air Force one.

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<v Speaker 2>Here is what he said. Oh now I love her ad?

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<v Speaker 2>Is that right? As Sidney sweet Eh, you'd be surprised

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<v Speaker 2>at how many people are Republicans.

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<v Speaker 1>If Sydney Sweeney is a registered Republican.

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<v Speaker 2>I think her ad is fantastic.

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<v Speaker 1>So clearly they're praising Sydney Sweeney and the ad as well.

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<v Speaker 1>And after that happened, he then doubled down on his

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<v Speaker 1>social media platform Truth Social.

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<v Speaker 2>He said the American Eagle.

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<v Speaker 1>Ad was the hottest ad out there, and he also

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<v Speaker 1>added that the genes are flying off the shells. Go

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<v Speaker 1>get them, Sydney. So I think you get the picture

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<v Speaker 1>that he is very much in support of Sidney Sweeney.

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<v Speaker 1>Now Trump isn't the only politician who has weighed in

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<v Speaker 1>on this. He is Vice President jd. Vance also weighed in.

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<v Speaker 1>He said, the response to this is an example of

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<v Speaker 1>the difference between Democrats and Republicans.

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<v Speaker 4>It actually reveals something pretty interesting about the Dems, though,

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<v Speaker 4>which is that you have like a normal, all American,

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<v Speaker 4>beautiful girl during doing like a normal Genes ad. Right,

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<v Speaker 4>they're trying to sell, you know, sell jeans to kids

0:13:14.880 --> 0:13:19.400
<v Speaker 4>in America, and they have managed to so unhinge themselves

0:13:19.920 --> 0:13:22.200
<v Speaker 4>over this thing. And it's like, you, guys, did you

0:13:22.280 --> 0:13:25.200
<v Speaker 4>learn nothing from the November twenty twenty four election. Like

0:13:25.280 --> 0:13:27.320
<v Speaker 4>I actually thought that one of the lessons they might

0:13:27.360 --> 0:13:30.439
<v Speaker 4>take is we're going to be less crazy. The lesson

0:13:30.480 --> 0:13:33.040
<v Speaker 4>they have apparently taken is we're going to attack people

0:13:33.880 --> 0:13:36.400
<v Speaker 4>as Nazis for thinking City Sweeney is beautiful.

0:13:36.840 --> 0:13:39.840
<v Speaker 3>So we're seeing the political conversation or I guess the

0:13:39.880 --> 0:13:42.960
<v Speaker 3>conversation from the right in the US, leaning on that

0:13:43.080 --> 0:13:48.120
<v Speaker 3>trope of its woke culture. It's PC gone mad. Exactly

0:13:48.679 --> 0:13:52.200
<v Speaker 3>Has anything else happened in recent days? Because this story

0:13:52.320 --> 0:13:53.160
<v Speaker 3>isn't coming away?

0:13:53.320 --> 0:13:56.040
<v Speaker 1>No. I mean we had a conversation about whether or

0:13:56.120 --> 0:13:58.880
<v Speaker 1>not it was too late for us to explain the controversy.

0:13:59.040 --> 0:14:00.760
<v Speaker 2>Yeah, but it really has just kept.

0:14:00.520 --> 0:14:03.480
<v Speaker 1>Going and going and isn't dying down. I think the

0:14:03.520 --> 0:14:06.640
<v Speaker 1>only other thing to mention that has been significant is

0:14:07.040 --> 0:14:10.400
<v Speaker 1>you might think that this level of controversy has been

0:14:10.520 --> 0:14:14.920
<v Speaker 1>bad for American Eagles reputation, but actually in terms of

0:14:15.080 --> 0:14:18.320
<v Speaker 1>its financials, it's kind of done the opposite, or it

0:14:18.400 --> 0:14:19.960
<v Speaker 1>has done the complete opposite.

0:14:20.040 --> 0:14:20.320
<v Speaker 3>Wow.

0:14:20.560 --> 0:14:25.440
<v Speaker 1>So on Monday, after Trump's post, American Eagle Outfitters, which

0:14:25.480 --> 0:14:30.520
<v Speaker 1>is their umbrella brand, their shares actually jumped twenty four percent,

0:14:31.160 --> 0:14:34.600
<v Speaker 1>and it was their best day in about twenty five years,

0:14:34.640 --> 0:14:37.440
<v Speaker 1>according to Wall Street Journal on the stock market.

0:14:37.640 --> 0:14:38.120
<v Speaker 3>Wow.

0:14:38.160 --> 0:14:41.720
<v Speaker 1>So they have added hundreds of millions of dollars to

0:14:41.840 --> 0:14:42.880
<v Speaker 1>their valuation.

0:14:43.400 --> 0:14:47.520
<v Speaker 3>Okay, I think that's really significant or an important turning

0:14:47.560 --> 0:14:50.000
<v Speaker 3>point in this story because what some people might have

0:14:50.080 --> 0:14:54.760
<v Speaker 3>dismissed as maybe a frivolous, viral social media conversation has

0:14:54.800 --> 0:15:00.560
<v Speaker 3>actually had real world economic impacts of significant value.

0:15:00.720 --> 0:15:03.080
<v Speaker 1>Yeah, and I think that is largely to do with

0:15:03.240 --> 0:15:07.440
<v Speaker 1>Donald Trump's comments, the US President's comments supporting it.

0:15:07.640 --> 0:15:10.840
<v Speaker 3>Yep. Well, Billy, I think we're all now going to

0:15:10.840 --> 0:15:14.080
<v Speaker 3>be waiting to hear from Sydney Sweeney, whether she likes

0:15:14.120 --> 0:15:17.240
<v Speaker 3>it or not. She has kind of become almost a

0:15:17.320 --> 0:15:20.120
<v Speaker 3>poster child for the MAGA movement this month or in

0:15:20.160 --> 0:15:22.960
<v Speaker 3>the last few weeks. You would think if that was

0:15:23.040 --> 0:15:27.120
<v Speaker 3>deeply against her politics, that she would want to explain that,

0:15:27.880 --> 0:15:31.960
<v Speaker 3>but maybe it's not against her politics either way. I

0:15:32.080 --> 0:15:34.200
<v Speaker 3>have a feeling we're probably going to be talking about

0:15:34.200 --> 0:15:35.760
<v Speaker 3>this again at some point in the future.

0:15:36.000 --> 0:15:38.360
<v Speaker 1>It will be fascinating to see what she does, because

0:15:38.640 --> 0:15:40.280
<v Speaker 1>if she comments on it in a week, or if

0:15:40.280 --> 0:15:42.600
<v Speaker 1>she comments on it in five years in you know,

0:15:42.680 --> 0:15:45.960
<v Speaker 1>a celebrity profile that she does looking back on her life,

0:15:46.200 --> 0:15:49.440
<v Speaker 1>at some point, I imagine she will have to comment

0:15:49.520 --> 0:15:49.840
<v Speaker 1>on this.

0:15:50.080 --> 0:15:53.440
<v Speaker 3>Oh one. Yeah, Billy, thank you so much for taking

0:15:53.520 --> 0:15:56.360
<v Speaker 3>us through that today. We really appreciate you breaking down

0:15:56.400 --> 0:15:59.120
<v Speaker 3>a pretty complicated one for us. Thank you and thank

0:15:59.120 --> 0:16:01.560
<v Speaker 3>you for listening to you today's episode. We will be

0:16:01.640 --> 0:16:04.280
<v Speaker 3>back a little later on this afternoon with your evening

0:16:04.360 --> 0:16:06.840
<v Speaker 3>news headlines, but until then, have a great day.

0:16:10.920 --> 0:16:13.240
<v Speaker 2>My name is Lily Maddon and I'm a proud Arunda

0:16:13.480 --> 0:16:18.280
<v Speaker 2>Bungelung Calkatin woman from Gadighl Country. The Daily oz acknowledges

0:16:18.360 --> 0:16:20.480
<v Speaker 2>that this podcast is recorded on the lands of the

0:16:20.520 --> 0:16:24.080
<v Speaker 2>Gadighl people and pays respect to all Aboriginal and Torres

0:16:24.120 --> 0:16:26.880
<v Speaker 2>s right island and nations. We pay our respects to

0:16:26.920 --> 0:16:29.840
<v Speaker 2>the first peoples of these countries, both past and present.