Samsung's latest advert has not had the best reception from the public after displaying a young woman running alone at night with headphones on.
As per the Guardian, the global company released a commercial, titled Night Owls, which is being used to promote the newest Galaxy Watch4, Galaxy Buds 2, and Galaxy S22 phone.
The young woman is seen putting her earbuds in and checking her watch which states that the time is 2 AM. She is then seen running through dark streets and alleyways. At one point, she runs past a male cyclist on a deserted bridge.
While she is running, the voiceover says: “Sleep at night. Run faster. Push harder. Follow the herd. Not for me, I run on a different schedule: mine.”
The commercial is sparking backlash online as users voice their concerns about it airing during the current climate.
One person said: "Just seen a Samsung advert where a woman gets up at 2 am and then goes for a run, in the dark, alone, with ear buds in. Do........any women work at Samsung?"
Another tweeted: "Hey @samsung how realistic do you think your advert of a woman running at 2am is on a scale of one to are you mad? This couldn’t be further from the experience of pretty much all women, especially wearing headphones! Assuming the only women involved in the making was the actress."
A third wrote: "New @samsung advert showing a woman running alone with headphones in at 2am is so unbelievably ignorant. I would love to feel safe going for a run at 2am. But I wouldn't ever even dream of it. How can we make change when the truths aren't acknowledged about our real experience?"
Women's safety group Reclaim These Streets described the advert as “completely and utterly tone deaf" after the death of 23-year-old Ashling Murphy, who was attacked while out running along a canal near Tullamore, west of Dublin. Murphy was attacked and murdered on January 12 in the afternoon by 31-year-old man Josef Puska.
Speaking to the Guardian, co-founder Jamie Klingler added: “It’s the Kendall Jenner Pepsi moment for Samsung. It isn’t safe for us to run at night and the last thing I want is for anyone to violate our space while we are trying to exercise. It’s almost laughable how bad this ad lands.”
Samsung has now apologized for the ad, stating that it intended to be positive.
"It was never our intention to be insensitive to ongoing conversations around women’s safety. As a global company with a diverse workforce, we apologize for how this may have been received," the company said.
