Two weeks ago, Bumble let its audience know a “new Bumble” was forthcoming. They stripped their Instagram of old posts, many of memes and models wearing T-shirts that read “Exhausted.” The teaser was interesting; a dating app leaning into how tired its audience is in a cheeky way. We waited to see where it went.
If you’ve seen my viral TikTok, you know it went straight to every brand’s worst nightmare: getting canceled.
A campaign with a billboard reading, “You Know Full Well a Vow of Celibacy Is Not the Answer,” next to a Black model in rose-colored glasses was (rightfully) lambasted for insensitivity to women’s bodily autonomy and consent, the asexual community, the 4B movement (a feminist platform that originated in South Korea), reproductive rights in the current political climate including abortion bans, and, as additional viral videos pointed out, through its usage of what felt to many viewers like appropriating AAVE.
Bumble, a brand founded on empowering women on dating apps and allowing them to search for romantic partners or friends, was telling women that choosing not to have sex was “not the answer.” In a play on Nike’s famous slogan, I opened my TikTok by referring to it as the “Just F—k Him” ad.
How disappointing. How reminiscent of claims that women actually “wanted it.” How evident that “inclusive” creative with diverse talent gave no thought to the stories that talent was cast to tell and how it would affect the communities they were cast to represent. And the target audience responded with calls for boycotts, one-star reviews and making their disdain known across social media.
Bumble issued an apology by Monday night—lightning fast when you consider that backlash started over the weekend and the statement would have needed to be contracted, written, approved by legal and pushed out.
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