Is the Old Spice Guy good for black America?
Old Spice's viral TV ads have turned black spokesperson Isaiah Mustafa into a star. Will his breakthrough success benefit other African-American men?
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
There's no question that Old Spice's current marketing campaign has transformed Isaiah Mustafa, the award-winning ads' hypnotically charismatic black spokesperson, into a pop-culture icon. Nearly 100 million viewers have watched him chastise unmanly men and straddle horses on YouTube. The ads have also earned Mustafa, a former NFL player who'd had bit parts on shows like "Ugly Betty," a lead role in a Tyler Perry movie and a talent deal with NBC. But will the prominence of a black Old Spice Guy have spin-off benefits for other African-American men? (Watch the Old Spice Guy's farewell)
Yes, the campaign is a big step forward: Not long ago, black men had two possible roles in advertising: "Violent savage or passive, simple-minded gofers," says Cord Jefferson in The Root. "A muscular black man addressing America's 'ladies'—not just black ladies, but all ladies—in a sexualized tone could have gotten him killed." This sophisticated, intelligent Old Spice Guy throws such notions out the window.
"Why the Old Spice Guy is good for Black America"
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Mustafa is good for America, period: There is something affirmatively "post-racial" about the casting of a black man (with a Muslim name, no less) as a mainstream sex symbol, says Tricia Romano in The Daily Beast. "One could argue that having a handsome black president has softened a lot of people’s ideas... Obama’s shaky polls notwithstanding." Let's hope Mustafa paves the way for greater diversity in pop culture.
"The Old Spice Man's internet triumph"
But is his race really such a big deal, at this point? Mustafa wasn't chosen "because we have a black president," says Dodai Stewart in Jezebel. "We have a black president because we're living in a time when Isaiah Mustafa can be cast as the Old Spice Guy." With diverse representations of black men in TV shows from "The Wire" to "30 Rock" to "Lost," African-Americans are no longer conspicuously invisible.
"Did Obama prepare America for the Old Spice Guy?"
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
-
Biden creates White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention
Speed Read The office will be led by Vice President Kamala Harris
By Justin Klawans Published
-
Chairman Jordan
Cartoons
By The Week Staff Published
-
10 things you need to know today: September 23, 2023
Daily Briefing Sen. Bob Menendez rejects calls to resign following indictment, Ukraine launches missile attack on occupied Crimean city, and more
By Justin Klawans Published