Sean Combs Angers Many with “Only Light-Skinned” Black Women Remark (268 hits)
(Taylor Media Services) Hip Hop mogul Sean “Diddy” Combs has been spending a lot of time and money in recent months trying to sharpen his image as a debonair Black playboy who should take the leading role in the next James Bond movie. But he hurt himself among many fans last week when issuing a casting call for his next CIROC vodka commercial.
In issuing the call for women to participate in the commercial, Combs specifically said that only “White, Hispanic and Light-skinned African American women” need apply. Combs and CIROC both later tried to back away from his comments but the damage had already been done.
Criticism came from a host of people including Pearl Jr., author of “Black Women Need Love, Too” who referred to Combs’ comments as “Another attack on Black women by one of our own.” Whether the criticism had an effect will not be known until the next CIROC vodka commercial airs on television.
Update: Turns out this might be fake. Here’s the official response from Ciroc. They don’t even know who put up the casting call without their permission.
“CIROC Vodka has nothing whatsoever to do with this inappropriate and offensive casting call, which was done without the brand’s knowledge or consent. We are currently investigating how this occurred. CIROC Vodka has created a brand that defines sophisticated celebration for all consumers, and in no way condones this practice.”
