Feuds

Mark Bittman Calls Out Beyoncé for Hawking Soda

Drink soda and you'll look like this, kids.
Drink soda and you’ll look like this, kids. Photo: Pepsi

In his latest op-ed for the Times, Bittman criticizes Queen B for partnering with Pepsi. As part of her $50 million, multiyear deal with the company, she’ll shake and shimmy her toned bod at the upcoming Pepsi Super Bowl halftime show. Making soda look sexy is probably more harmful to kids than seeing a nipple. Though Beyoncé’s surely not the only celebrity promoting sugary drinks (LeBron, Madonna, and Sir Elton have all done the same), she’s one of the more hypocritical ones: Jay and B, the ‘03 Bonnie and Clyde, also support Michelle Obama’s “Let’s Move” public health campaign to encourage exercise. Bittman makes a strong argument. By comparing soda to tobacco, Bittman wants to shift public opinion, stop product placement on shows like American Idol, and push “top moneymakers” to carefully consider their endorsements. But it’s doubtful that anyone will change their ways out of moral consciousness, especially when they’re literally shaking their moneymakers in front of 110 million Super Bowl viewers. [NYT]

Mark Bittman Calls Out Beyoncé for Hawking Soda