I defended Sydney Sweeney’s last ad. I won’t defend this one

Published September 19, 2026 8:00am ET | Updated September 19, 2026 10:32am ET



When American Eagle released its “Sydney Sweeney Has Great Jeans” campaign last year, I found the outrage ridiculous. 

I like seeing a beautiful woman unapologetically presented as beautiful. I like even more that Sweeney refused to participate in the familiar ritual in which somebody commits an imaginary cultural offense and is then expected to crawl through a series of humiliating apologies to prove she has been redeemed.

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