Another Kellogg’s Fail

Another Kellogg’s Fail

I just finished writing about what jerks Kellogg’s are—how they sell Americans inferior, more harmful products than the ones they sell in Europe—and then they come out with this heinous commercial for their “Special K” cereal.

It must be so new that there’s not a copy on the web yet, as I can’t seem to find one, but it basically goes like this: A woman wearing a red coat with white trim is lugging in her holiday decorations from outside and having a hard time of it. This is a natural thing, right? We all hate hauling stuff away, and she has a lot to haul—lights and plenty of other odds and ends.

It’s important to note that this woman appears perfectly healthy.

She does not seem to be overweight—at least, not to me, though in America, if you’re bigger than a size two you’re considered rotund these days—and in fact is doing just fine lugging those decorations into her house.

Then she hears a loud noise behind her. She turns to find a sleigh, attached to eight reindeer, in her yard, as if they are waiting for her orders. They apparently believe she is Santa because of the pounds she put on during the holidays, and Special K has just the thing to get rid of those!

Oh, where to begin with the issues this commercial has? Let’s set aside the obvious issue that reindeer are apparently completely stupid, that they couldn’t distinguish between a giant, jolly, hundreds-of-years-old elf next to a non-obese, healthy woman (or their home, or the date they normally fly to houses every single year). We do tend to look down at non-human animals quite a bit as a whole, after all, mocking them for our enjoyment, because we’re so superior with our light-up shoes and snuggies and highballs.

The bigger issue here, of course, is the portrayal of poor body image and fat hatred in this country—how even a few pounds of weight gain make us jumbo-sized in the eyes of the status quo, and how we should assume that this woman—again, who doesn’t seem fat at all (and even if she did, that doesn’t mean she needs to change herself)—wants to lose weight, or worse, should lose weight because we’re judging her based on her weight. “Oh, yes,” we’re supposed to agree, “After the holidays she looks like a blimp! She needs the Special K diet. I gained five pounds, too; I need to eat Special K, too!”

Instead, all I could do was narrow my eyes and hiss at the screen. When I want to lose weight, I do it for myself—not because I apparently look like Santa Clause (though this woman clearly did not). And I won’t do it by eating cereal twice a day—though that could be healthy if it’s whole grain and paired with fresh fruits and vegetables; I do it through balanced eating and exercise. I would encourage anyone else who wants to lose weight for themselves—not to satisfy the demands of society—to do the same, or to consult with a doctor on the safest route for them, and not buy Special K cereal until they can stop shaming women.