In the world we live in today, a 30-second video can do a lot of good or bad as soon as it gets to viewers. Unfortunately, the latter was the general public’s reaction to a video posted by the U.S. Army on November 7, 2023.
The video, posted on the social media platform X (Formerly Twitter), went viral for all the negative reasons shortly after the account posted it. X users took to the quotes and comment section to express their displeasure at the ad, claiming it wasn’t promoting inclusivity.
The “Anti-Woke” Ad
The advertisement video that sparked public outrage on X was a 30-second ad that was supposed to promote the Army in a good light. The ad depicts a group of soldiers jumping from a Chinook helicopter and parachuting to the ground with smiles.
The video also included the captions “Your greatest victories are never achieved alone” and “Be all you can be.”
The Public’s Interpretation of the Ad
On paper, this ad sounds like a regular video to encourage people to join the force. However, that was different from how the public interpreted it. This is because the ad featured predominantly white males, excluding women and people of color.
As the U.S. army does not consist only of white males, it is easy to understand the need for representation across all boards.
The Public’s Outrage
The video went viral on X, with 13.1 million views and counting. Several users mocked the ad for its lack of diversity in its comments section and quotes.
For example, an X user, Carl Benjamin (@sargon_of_akkad), commented, “Where is the diversity?” along with a confused duck meme. His comment racked up over 176,000 likes and 137 replies agreeing with him.
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Racism Came Into Play
Surprisingly, another take on the video was that it was racist towards white people.
An X account (@BIPOCracism) wrote: “Y’all really think you could treat us (White men) like garbage, enforce diversity quotas, put black women in positions of authority because they’re black women, and expect us to look kindly upon you? The U.S. Army is a trash organization that needs to be rebuilt from the ground up.”
Conservative Activists’ Opinions
According to some conservative activists, this video only “reinforced their anger” at the Army and its recruitment process. To them, the recent recruitment videos were insufficiently macho and somewhat degrading.
Many also referenced a previous ad featuring Corporal Emma Malonelord, who talked about how she was “raised by two moms” and had “marched for equality.”
Some People Had Unexpected Reactions
While most people had strong opinions about the video, a select few reacted unexpectedly. They found the video “funny” and an opportunity to share various memes.
A user @JoelWBerry commented, “Don’t fall for it, boys,” with a “Star Wars” meme. Another user commented, “just here for the ratio,” with a laughing emoji suggesting he was only there to enjoy the backlash.
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Two People of Color Appeared in the Video
Despite the uproar caused by the video, there were two non-white soldiers present in the ad. However, deliberately or not, the two people of color were barely visible in the ad, so most people didn’t notice.
The primary focus in the video was the white males, and one has to watch the video with great intent to notice the other races in it.
The Negative Impact of the Video
Without a doubt, the video has already done a lot of damage to society. Its comment section is filled with users complaining about the lack of diversity and opting out of enrolling in the Army.
A user commented, “It’s too late for this marketing campaign to work,” while another wrote, “We’re not fighting your Zionist wars.”
Media Publications Critisized the Video
The conservative publication “The American Mind” also criticized the video.
A representative of the team wrote: “The U.S. Army’s new recruitment ad is so cynical. After 15 years of relentless progressive brainwashing and doing a literal ‘stand down’ to root out “extremists” (i.e., white conservatives), they are now facing an existential recruiting crisis and must return again to seducing the children of said ‘extremists’ into fighting for their country. A country that no longer exists.”
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Army Veterans Also Had Something To Say
Army veterans also had their opinions on the matter. Patrick Fox, a military analyst and U.S. Air Force veteran, suggested the new ad resulted from the Army’s widely reported recruitment problems.
He wrote: “This is the recruiting ad equivalent of the U.S. Army hitting the panic button. They were 25% short of recruiting goal targets this year.”
The Recruitment Problem in the Army
It is not news that the Army is facing a considerable recruitment problem. For the past two years and counting, they have fallen short of recruitment goals due to a shortage of applicants.
In the past year, the Army fell 10,000 short of its goal to recruit 65,000 troops after missing out on its target of 60,000 soldiers the previous year by 15,000.
Solutions to the Recruitment Problem
The top officials in the force are aware of this problem and eager to take steps to fix it.
At a press briefing discussing the issue, Army Secretary Christine Wormuth said: “It was evident we were going to have to make more transformative changes…The job market has changed significantly over the past 20 years, but we as the Army haven’t changed very much.”
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