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Good morning, 

It’s the summer of the big brand apology, and this weekend it was Converse's turn. 

The company has pulled two ads after people said they evoked Ku Klux Klan and lynching imagery. The photos were part of a campaign promoting the Nike brand's Chuck 70 X sneaker and included an image of singer Karina of K-pop group Aespa, wearing a white robe and holding a pair of dangling shoes.

After issuing an apology on Friday, a memo circulated to employees from CEO Aaron Cain also promised "a hard look at our internal review process and the critical lens we apply to our work."

"The images should not have been used, and we began removing them from all channels as soon as the concern was raised," Cain wrote.

Keep scrolling to get the full story, along with news from Dreamforce, Brandweek, and more.

1. Converse Apologizes After Roiling Social Media With Ads That Evoke a Lynching

Nike-owned brand Converse has stirred up some social media users with several ads people have said recalled Ku Klux Klan imagery.

In one of the now-removed images, Karina stands in a spotlight shaped like Converse’s famous star, one point highlighting a bright white triangle on her skirt, such that some social media users see the outline of a Klansman’s hood.

Additionally, Karina’s long skirt, coupled with the shoes dangling from her hands, evoke for some the image of a Klansman standing next to the victim of a lynching. Read the brand's apology statement here.

Read more

2. AI Agents Get a Reality Check: AT&T and Crocs Want Automation but Still Need Humans in the Loop

Last week, our AI reporter Trishla Ostwal touched down in San Francisco, where Salesforce threw its biggest party: Dreamforce. Gwen Stefani, Katy Perry, and Usher were on the bill. 

So were OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei, and Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who took to the stage to debate a more consequential question: Does AI development need to slow down?

Trishla reflects on the mood on the ground and explains why the week also offered a reality check for AI agents. 

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3. 3 Ways Starbucks Is Reclaiming Its Brand Magic

Two years in, the “Back to Starbucks” transformation plan is gaining momentum, with global comparable sales up 7.9% last quarter. 

At Brandweek in Atlanta, Starbucks chief brand officer Tressie Lieberman sat down with ADWEEK's Jenny Rooney to discuss how the Seattle-founded brand has been reclaiming the spirit that made it iconic in the first place.

Read more

4. New York Times Marks 175 Years With a Print Love Letter to Advertising

To commemorate its 175th anniversary on Friday, The New York Times took the opportunity to thank the people who really make its reporting possible: the advertisers.

New York Times Advertising is running a multi-page print spread that pulls together seven of the most memorable ads to have run in the paper, dating back to 1851, when the publisher first launched.

Mark Stenberg enters the wayback machine.

Read more

5. VMAs Brings Back the Best Dance Category, and You Can Thank Bacardi

And on the subject of throwbacks, Bacardi is taking its MTV Video Music Awards sponsorship a step further, helping bring back the show’s Best Dance category after a seven-year hiatus.

The rum brand’s integration will feature remixes of three former Best Dance winners, with Latin Grammy-nominated producer Caleb Calloway behind the music.

Robert Klara says the move is part of Bacardi’s ongoing strategy to embed itself in music culture.

Read more

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