The longtime fictional faces of the brand are being replaced by former “Saturday Night Live” star Maya Rudolph.
Author’s Note
This article is based on corporate postings and accredited media reports. Linked information within this article is attributed to the following outlets: Wikipedia.org, Twitter.com, and Yahoo.com.
Introduction
Wikipedia features a comprehensive and well-attributed overview of M&Ms candy: The candy originated in the United States in 1941, and M&M's have been sold in over 100 countries since 2003. They are produced in different colors, some of which have changed over the years. The candy-coated chocolate concept was inspired by a method used to allow soldiers in the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) to carry chocolate in warm climates without it melting. The company's longest-lasting slogan reflects this: "Melts in your mouth, not in your hand." A traditional milk chocolate M&M weighs about 0.91 grams / 0.032 ounces and has about 4.7 calories (kcal) of food energ (1.7 kcal from fat).
As it regard’s the entity’s unique “spokescandies,” the Wikipedia page goes on to state: This campaign was created by Blue Sky Studios. Concurrent with 1995's blue M&M campaign, M&M's introduced second computer-animated "spokescandies" in their television commercials. The depiction and campaign of the M&M's were made by Will Vinton in 1995.
Today, 28 years following the first appearance of said “spokescandies,” they are being replaced in brand marketing by comic-actress and former “Saturday Night Live” star Maya Rudolph, due to recent controversies.
Let us explore further.
M&Ms, 2023
The perennial candy company announced the news on Twitter earlier today. A graphic can be found in the Yahoo.com report linked below.
According to Yahoo.com’s “M&Ms Says It's Replacing 'Beloved Spokescandies' with Maya Rudolph,” the explanation for the sudden change is reportedly based on characterizations of some of the “spokescandies” that allegedly have offended some individuals and groups.
As excerpted from the report, which claims in part that the four-month-old new purple “spokescandy” led to unexpected controversy: In January, Purple joined the other female spokescandies, Brown and Green, on an all-female M&M's package that was designed to "celebrate women everywhere who are flipping the status quo." Conservative critics on outlets like Fox News immediately took issue with the campaign, suggesting that M&M's had gone "woke." Meanwhile, Fox News' Tucker Carlson took issue with the more empowered depiction of the female spokescandies, complaining that Purple appeared "plus-sized" and suggesting that the Green character was coded as a lesbian.
The Yahoo.com report, however, credited the reporter for likely influencing the parent company’s decision: While Carlson's objections inspired some trolling on social media, his argument improbably took root in conservative media circles and may have influenced Mars's decision to relegate the M&M's spokescandies to the sidelines. In their Twitter statement, the brand notably suggested that the recent decisions have been "polarizing," adding: "We're all about bringing people together."
The “Spokescandies’” hiatus is said to be indefinite.
Conclusion
This is a developing story. In the event of pertinent updates regarding these matters, I will share them here on NewsBreak.
Thank you for reading.
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