New Delhi: Pantone’s 2026 Color of the Year has run into trouble this year with many terming it “tone-deaf” and an attempt to “spark controversy.” The colour institute announced Cloud Dancer (PANTONE 11-4201), a bland off-white shade, as colour of the year. As per the company, it is “a calming influence in a society rediscovering the value of quiet reflection.”
But, their choice didn’t go down well with a section of people, who are accusing the company of attempting to stir up controversy similar to that of Sydney Sweeney’s American Eagle “genes” campaign. They have called the colour choice a proof of “whitewashing of America gone too far.”
The Pantone Color Institute has been picking a colour of the year since 1999. Last year’s colour was a light brown shade called Mocha Mousse. Pantone described it as a colour that “nurtures us with its suggestion of the delectable qualities of chocolate and coffee, answering our desire for comfort.”
This is the first time Pantone has picked a shade of white for the Color of the Year.
One TikToker even called out the flawed marketing of the colour as “soothing.”
“Pantone choosing white or cloudy days as color of the year is a political statement. Call me too woke, I don’t care. I don’t think I’m wrong. It’s giving Sydney Sweeney has good genes. You’re going to choose white and market it as a soothing reset? For who, babe? Who is that soothing?” a TikToker, rabaebae 28, said.
Another TikToker, Lilivhope said that, “if not a dog whistle, why does it look like a dog whistle?”
Also read: Sydney Sweeney’s ‘great jeans’ ad shows the risks of edgy marketing
Designed to rage bait?
The comment section of Pantone’s post on Instagram is flooded with backlash.
People on social media are finding it hard to admit that the company didn’t anticipate the controversy that might follow over the colour choice, especially in these contentious times.
“That lack of foresight is what makes it feel intentional. Choosing a color that is, in theory, the “absence of color” almost seems designed to spark exactly this kind of reaction. I can’t help but think they expected, or even wanted this attention. Good or bad, people are talking about them, and that alone can be the goal,” read a comment.
Another said, “Choosing an almost-white shade as the Color of the Year right now is hard to separate from the broader cultural context we’re living in.”
Users pointed out that at a time, when white supremacy is resurfacing loudly in US leadership and policy, elevating ‘white’ as the symbolic colour of the year “feels painfully tone-deaf.”
The colour choice, as per social media, reflects who was in the room, whose perspectives were missing, and what messages get unintentionally reinforced.
Some users even wondered whether Sydney Sweeney had a say in this?
The actor, earlier this year, featured in American Eagle’s campaign which came with a tagline—“Sydney Sweeney has great jeans.” It played on the word ‘genes’, which naturally leads viewers to think about the genetics of the blonde-haired, blue-eyed woman. And, it created an uproar on social media. After avoiding addressing the backlash since the ad’s release in July, Sweeney spoke to People Magazine about it on 5 December.
“I don’t support the views some people chose to connect to the campaign. Many have assigned motives and labels to me that just aren’t true,” she said.
(Edited by Theres Sudeep)