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It’s the controversy that just won’t go away, and now the White House is weighing in on the American Eagle jeans advertisement featuring actress Sydney Sweeney. 

Steven Cheung, longtime adviser for Donald Trump and the White House communications director, wrote on X: “Cancel culture run amok. This warped, moronic and dense liberal thinking is a big reason why Americans voted the way they did in 2024. They’re tired of this bullshit.” 

For context, the tagline of the ad campaign is “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” and plays on the homonym ‘jeans’ and ‘genes’.  

One of the clips centres on Sweeney saying: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality, and even eye colour. My jeans are blue.” 

This has led many to take issue with the ad, accusing American Eagle of promoting “white supremacy” and eugenics, with some calling the campaign a “Nazi” dogwhistle. 

Check out our explainer on the Sydney Sweeney controversy.  

Since the ads were released last month, the pushback has been growing in intensity – with some reactions going viral online. 

The clips have split opinions, with many arguing that in the current political climate, the racial undertones of the campaign are a bad look.

One TikTok post by @thealtperspective has been viewed nearly 2 million times and has the text overla:y “literally an ad FULL of racist and fascist dog whistles. ‘great jeans,’ a pun on great genes, those genes being blue eyed, blonde hair, white skin.” 

However, the American Right has used the controversy to blast the liberal Left and to push back against perceived “wokeness.” 

For instance, conservative TV personality Megyn Kelly has also called out the “lunatics on the Left” for their take-down of the ad. 

“She’s being called a white supremacist by people who don’t like her latest ad, which is for American Eagle,” she said. “She’s advertising jeans, and yet the lunatics on the Left think she’s advertising white supremacy. This is obviously a reference to her body and not to her skin colour, but the lunatic left is going to do what the lunatic left is going to do.” 

Kelly added: “They’re upset because it’s about who gets to be the face of America’s Best Genes. They think it’s no accident that they’ve chosen a white, thin woman because you’re, I guess, not allowed to celebrate those things in any way, shape, or form. But they’re completely ignoring the reference to her body, which is the thing she’s famous for. It’s just absurd.” 

As expected, the recent post on X by the White House’s communications director has only added fuel to the fire.

Check out some of the reactions below:  

Despite the controversy generated by the ads, the clips have been going viral – with the most ‘popular’ ad garnering more than 80 million views as of 31 July.

The ads have also boosted American Eagle’s stock by more than 15 per cent.  

This isn’t the first time that Sydney Sweeney has been surrounded by controversy.

The Euphoria and White Lotus actress faced criticism earlier this year for the sale of a Dr. Squatch bar of soap that contains her actual bathwater. Many labelled this as being antifeminist.  

Additionally, in 2022, she was slammed by fans after photos showed guests wearing MAGA-like hats at a 60th birthday party for her mother. 

Sweeney addressed this in a statement, saying: “An innocent celebration for my moms milestone 60th birthday has turned into an absurd political statement, which was not the intention. Please stop making assumptions.” 

Still, the internet was far from convinced…  

Neither Sweeney nor American Eagle has publicly responded to the controversy as of the publication of this article.

ADVERTISEMENT

It’s the controversy that just won’t go away, and now the White House is weighing in on the American Eagle jeans advertisement featuring actress Sydney Sweeney. 

Steven Cheung, longtime adviser for Donald Trump and the White House communications director, wrote on X: “Cancel culture run amok. This warped, moronic and dense liberal thinking is a big reason why Americans voted the way they did in 2024. They’re tired of this bullshit.” 

For context, the tagline of the ad campaign is “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” and plays on the homonym ‘jeans’ and ‘genes’.  

One of the clips centres on Sweeney saying: “Genes are passed down from parents to offspring, often determining traits like hair colour, personality, and even eye colour. My jeans are blue.” 

This has led many to take issue with the ad, accusing American Eagle of promoting “white supremacy” and eugenics, with some calling the campaign a “Nazi” dogwhistle. 

Check out our explainer on the Sydney Sweeney controversy.  

Since the ads were released last month, the pushback has been growing in intensity – with some reactions going viral online. 

The clips have split opinions, with many arguing that in the current political climate, the racial undertones of the campaign are a bad look.

One TikTok post by @thealtperspective has been viewed nearly 2 million times and has the text overla:y “literally an ad FULL of racist and fascist dog whistles. ‘great jeans,’ a pun on great genes, those genes being blue eyed, blonde hair, white skin.” 

However, the American Right has used the controversy to blast the liberal Left and to push back against perceived “wokeness.” 

For instance, conservative TV personality Megyn Kelly has also called out the “lunatics on the Left” for their take-down of the ad. 

“She’s being called a white supremacist by people who don’t like her latest ad, which is for American Eagle,” she said. “She’s advertising jeans, and yet the lunatics on the Left think she’s advertising white supremacy. This is obviously a reference to her body and not to her skin colour, but the lunatic left is going to do what the lunatic left is going to do.” 

Kelly added: “They’re upset because it’s about who gets to be the face of America’s Best Genes. They think it’s no accident that they’ve chosen a white, thin woman because you’re, I guess, not allowed to celebrate those things in any way, shape, or form. But they’re completely ignoring the reference to her body, which is the thing she’s famous for. It’s just absurd.” 

As expected, the recent post on X by the White House’s communications director has only added fuel to the fire.

Check out some of the reactions below:  

Despite the controversy generated by the ads, the clips have been going viral – with the most ‘popular’ ad garnering more than 80 million views as of 31 July.

The ads have also boosted American Eagle’s stock by more than 15 per cent.  

This isn’t the first time that Sydney Sweeney has been surrounded by controversy.

The Euphoria and White Lotus actress faced criticism earlier this year for the sale of a Dr. Squatch bar of soap that contains her actual bathwater. Many labelled this as being antifeminist.  

Additionally, in 2022, she was slammed by fans after photos showed guests wearing MAGA-like hats at a 60th birthday party for her mother. 

Sweeney addressed this in a statement, saying: “An innocent celebration for my moms milestone 60th birthday has turned into an absurd political statement, which was not the intention. Please stop making assumptions.” 

Still, the internet was far from convinced…  

Neither Sweeney nor American Eagle has publicly responded to the controversy as of the publication of this article.

A famous singer-actress has broken up with her fiancé weeks after they were spotted together in Syracuse on a date.

Paris Jackson, the daughter of late music icon Michael Jackson, announced Thursday that she and musician Justin Long have ended their relationship. Paris responded to a Daily Mail post on X (formerly Twitter) that showed paparazzi photos of her crying on July 23, suggesting it was related to the recent anniversary of her father’s death.

“Those are breakup tears,” Jackson tweeted. “Y’all are fkn reaching again.”

She did not elaborate on the split, but E! News reports she also erased several photos with Long from her Instagram.

Jackson, 27, announced their engagement in December after three years of dating.

“Doing life with you these last years has been an indescribable whirlwind and i couldn’t dream of anyone more perfect for me to do it all with,” she wrote at the time. “Thank you for letting me be yours. I love you.”

Jackson and Long visited the Rise N Shine Diner in Syracuse on June 29, happily posing for a photo together with restaurant staff. It appeared to be a lunch stop while on tour; Jackson opened for Incubus in Connecticut the night before and was scheduled to perform again the next night in Toronto.

Paris, whose dad was the King of Pop behind hits like “Billie Jean” and “Thriller,” is also a musician herself performing a mix of alternative rock and dreamy pop. Long (who is not related to the “Dodgeball” actor of the same name) performed in her backing band and works as a recording engineer and producer, including with artists like 5 Seconds of Summer, Grace Potter and Sleater-Kinney.

It wasn’t Jackson’s first time in Syracuse. She previously acted in an American High movie, “Sex Appeal,” filmed around Central New York in 2021.

Jackson and Long also attended the premiere of her latest film, “One Spoon of Chocolate,” at the Tribeca Film Festival in June. At the time, Jackson told Access Hollywood they had set a wedding date and suggested they were getting married soon.

“The dress is being made, the venue has been picked and the date has been picked by an astrologer, because I’m from LA,” she said. ”I’m all about the crystals and the astrologer, and all that stuff.”

Jackson, whose acting credits also include Fox’s “Star,” MTV’s “Scream” and “American Horror Stories,” released her debut album in 2020 and has since released several singles and an EP. Her concert tour with Incubus ended on July 19; she is next scheduled to perform with Queens of the Stone Age in October and November.

A famous singer-actress has broken up with her fiancé weeks after they were spotted together in Syracuse on a date.

Paris Jackson, the daughter of late music icon Michael Jackson, announced Thursday that she and musician Justin Long have ended their relationship. Paris responded to a Daily Mail post on X (formerly Twitter) that showed paparazzi photos of her crying on July 23, suggesting it was related to the recent anniversary of her father’s death.

“Those are breakup tears,” Jackson tweeted. “Y’all are fkn reaching again.”

She did not elaborate on the split, but E! News reports she also erased several photos with Long from her Instagram.

Jackson, 27, announced their engagement in December after three years of dating.

“Doing life with you these last years has been an indescribable whirlwind and i couldn’t dream of anyone more perfect for me to do it all with,” she wrote at the time. “Thank you for letting me be yours. I love you.”

Jackson and Long visited the Rise N Shine Diner in Syracuse on June 29, happily posing for a photo together with restaurant staff. It appeared to be a lunch stop while on tour; Jackson opened for Incubus in Connecticut the night before and was scheduled to perform again the next night in Toronto.

Paris, whose dad was the King of Pop behind hits like “Billie Jean” and “Thriller,” is also a musician herself performing a mix of alternative rock and dreamy pop. Long (who is not related to the “Dodgeball” actor of the same name) performed in her backing band and works as a recording engineer and producer, including with artists like 5 Seconds of Summer, Grace Potter and Sleater-Kinney.

It wasn’t Jackson’s first time in Syracuse. She previously acted in an American High movie, “Sex Appeal,” filmed around Central New York in 2021.

Jackson and Long also attended the premiere of her latest film, “One Spoon of Chocolate,” at the Tribeca Film Festival in June. At the time, Jackson told Access Hollywood they had set a wedding date and suggested they were getting married soon.

“The dress is being made, the venue has been picked and the date has been picked by an astrologer, because I’m from LA,” she said. ”I’m all about the crystals and the astrologer, and all that stuff.”

Jackson, whose acting credits also include Fox’s “Star,” MTV’s “Scream” and “American Horror Stories,” released her debut album in 2020 and has since released several singles and an EP. Her concert tour with Incubus ended on July 19; she is next scheduled to perform with Queens of the Stone Age in October and November.

New York — Prosecutors said they now expect music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs could face a prison sentence “substantially higher” than the four-to-five years they once thought he was likely to face after his conviction on two prostitution-related charges.

They made the observation late Thursday in a Manhattan federal court written submission in which they also opposed Combs’ request this week to be released on $50 million bail while he awaits an Oct. 3 sentencing.

In early July, Combs, 55, was acquitted of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges carrying potential life prison terms but was convicted of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for arranging for girlfriends and male sex workers to travel to engage in sexual encounters that he filmed.

Each prostitution-related charge carries a potential maximum 10 years in prison.

Prosecutors said after the verdict that they thought federal sentencing guidelines meant to prevent wide disparities in sentencings for the same crimes would likely call for a prison term of four-to five-years. But they said Thursday they believe the guidelines range “will be substantially higher,” raising the risk Combs will flee.

Judge Arun Subramanian will have wide latitude in determining a sentence and can choose to ignore the guidelines, which are not mandatory. Combs’ lawyers have said they believe the guidelines, if properly calculated, will call for 21-to-27 months in prison.

On the day of the verdict, prosecutors won a bail fight after defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo argued Combs should be freed immediately on bail.

Subramanian denied the defense request, saying Combs had not met the burden of showing by clear and convincing evidence a “lack of danger to any person or the community.” But he said Agnifilo could renew the request.

In doing so Tuesday, Agnifilo cited other cases he said were comparable to Combs’ conviction in which defendants were granted bail. And he cited severe conditions at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where Combs has been held since his September arrest at a New York hotel.

He also said Combs was being treated unfairly for engaging in a “swingers” lifestyle in which he and his girlfriends sometimes invited male sex workers to join them in multiday marathon sex performances.

Prosecutors said in their filing Thursday that Combs’ conviction on the prostitution-related counts carried a mandatory requirement that he remain in jail prior to sentencing, unless he could prove exceptional circumstances, which they said he cannot.

They said he should also remain in prison as a danger to the community, a claim Agnifilo disputed in his papers.

“Sean Combs will not be violent to anyone. As we said in court, this jury gave him his life back, and he will not squander his second chance at life, nor would he do anything to further jeopardize his seven children not having a father, and four of his children not having a parent at all,” Agnifilo wrote earlier this week.

Prosecutors also said conditions at the federal lockup had improved considerably before Combs was arrested. A federal judge in January 2024 had blasted conditions at the jail, including its extensive lockdowns and inadequate medical care.

Prosecutors said cases cited by Agnifilo in which other defendants received bail were not comparable to the crimes Combs was convicted of carrying out, particularly because of his propensity for violence.

“The defendant’s extensive history of violence – and his continued attempt to minimize his recent violent conduct – demonstrates his dangerousness and that he is not amendable to supervision,” they wrote. “The defendant utterly fails to establish by clear and convincing evidence, as required, that he does not pose a danger to the community.”

New York — Prosecutors said they now expect music mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs could face a prison sentence “substantially higher” than the four-to-five years they once thought he was likely to face after his conviction on two prostitution-related charges.

They made the observation late Thursday in a Manhattan federal court written submission in which they also opposed Combs’ request this week to be released on $50 million bail while he awaits an Oct. 3 sentencing.

In early July, Combs, 55, was acquitted of racketeering conspiracy and sex trafficking charges carrying potential life prison terms but was convicted of two counts of transportation to engage in prostitution for arranging for girlfriends and male sex workers to travel to engage in sexual encounters that he filmed.

Each prostitution-related charge carries a potential maximum 10 years in prison.

Prosecutors said after the verdict that they thought federal sentencing guidelines meant to prevent wide disparities in sentencings for the same crimes would likely call for a prison term of four-to five-years. But they said Thursday they believe the guidelines range “will be substantially higher,” raising the risk Combs will flee.

Judge Arun Subramanian will have wide latitude in determining a sentence and can choose to ignore the guidelines, which are not mandatory. Combs’ lawyers have said they believe the guidelines, if properly calculated, will call for 21-to-27 months in prison.

On the day of the verdict, prosecutors won a bail fight after defense lawyer Marc Agnifilo argued Combs should be freed immediately on bail.

Subramanian denied the defense request, saying Combs had not met the burden of showing by clear and convincing evidence a “lack of danger to any person or the community.” But he said Agnifilo could renew the request.

In doing so Tuesday, Agnifilo cited other cases he said were comparable to Combs’ conviction in which defendants were granted bail. And he cited severe conditions at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn, where Combs has been held since his September arrest at a New York hotel.

He also said Combs was being treated unfairly for engaging in a “swingers” lifestyle in which he and his girlfriends sometimes invited male sex workers to join them in multiday marathon sex performances.

Prosecutors said in their filing Thursday that Combs’ conviction on the prostitution-related counts carried a mandatory requirement that he remain in jail prior to sentencing, unless he could prove exceptional circumstances, which they said he cannot.

They said he should also remain in prison as a danger to the community, a claim Agnifilo disputed in his papers.

“Sean Combs will not be violent to anyone. As we said in court, this jury gave him his life back, and he will not squander his second chance at life, nor would he do anything to further jeopardize his seven children not having a father, and four of his children not having a parent at all,” Agnifilo wrote earlier this week.

Prosecutors also said conditions at the federal lockup had improved considerably before Combs was arrested. A federal judge in January 2024 had blasted conditions at the jail, including its extensive lockdowns and inadequate medical care.

Prosecutors said cases cited by Agnifilo in which other defendants received bail were not comparable to the crimes Combs was convicted of carrying out, particularly because of his propensity for violence.

“The defendant’s extensive history of violence – and his continued attempt to minimize his recent violent conduct – demonstrates his dangerousness and that he is not amendable to supervision,” they wrote. “The defendant utterly fails to establish by clear and convincing evidence, as required, that he does not pose a danger to the community.”