Current:Home > StocksAnheuser-Busch CEO Addresses Bud Light Controversy Over Dylan Mulvaney -Wealth Legacy Solutions
Anheuser-Busch CEO Addresses Bud Light Controversy Over Dylan Mulvaney
View
Date:2025-04-17 01:27:05
Anheuser-Busch is looking to move on from the backlash.
More than two months after trans activist Dylan Mulvaney shared a sponsored Instagram post with a can of Bud Light, the brewing company is addressing the fallout—which included a boycott from conservative customers and a loss in sales as well as transphobic comments aimed at the TikToker.
"It's been a challenging few weeks and I think the conversation surrounding Bud Light has moved away from beer and the conversation has become divisive and Bud Light really doesn't belong there," Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth told CBS Mornings in an interview that aired June 28. "Bud Light should be all about bringing people together."
In her April post, Mulvaney revealed Anheuser-Busch had sent her a Bud Light can bearing an image of her face to celebrate the first anniversary of her transition.
Whitworth reiterated, this in his interview, noting, "Just to be clear, it was a gift, and it was one can. But for us, as we look to the future and we look to moving forward, we have to understand the impact that it's had."
He pointed to the toll the controversy had taken on various members of the Bud Light community—from Anheuser-Busch employees to retailers selling the beer.
"One thing that I'd love to make extremely clear," he continued, "is that impact is my responsibility, and as the CEO, everything we do here, I'm accountable for."
When asked if he would, in retrospect, send Dylan the Bud Light can, Whitworth didn't outright answer. "There's a big social conversation taking place right now and big brands are right in the middle of it," he explained. "For us, what we need to understand is, deeply understand and appreciate, is the consumer and what they want, what they care about and what they expect from big brands."
Whitworth said financial assistance was sent to wholesalers affected by the decline and that the company was also "announcing investment for our front-line employees and their employment, adding, "I think it's the impact, honestly on the employees that weighs most on me."
Whitworth had initially addressed the backlash over Dylan's video two weeks after it started. In mid-April Whitworth said in a statement on social media, saying, "We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer."
This response drew criticism from many members of the LGBTQ+ community.
However, after he was asked on CBS Mornings if sending the can to Dylan was a mistake, Whitworth affirmed the company's support of the LGBTQ+ community.
"Bud Light has supported LGBTQ since 1998, so that's 25 years," he said. "As we've said from the beginning, we'll continue to support the communities and organizations that we've supported for decades. But as we move forward, we want to focus on what we do best, which is brewing great beer for everyone, listening to our consumers, being humble in listening to them, making sure we do right by our employees, take care and support our partners and ultimately, make an impact in the communities that we serve."
For the latest breaking news updates, click here to download the E! News AppveryGood! (796)
Related
- Whoopi Goldberg is delightfully vile as Miss Hannigan in ‘Annie’ stage return
- Mega Millions winning numbers for October 8 drawing: Jackpot rises to $129 million
- AI Ω: Revolutionizing the Financial Industry and Heralding the Era of Smart Finance
- Escaped cattle walk on to highway, sparking 3 car crashes and 25 animal deaths in North Dakota
- The 401(k) millionaires club keeps growing. We'll tell you how to join.
- Johnny Manziel surprises Diego Pavia; says Vanderbilt's upset of Alabama 'feels like 2012'
- 'Shrinkflation' in Pepsi, Coke, General Mills products targeted by Democrats
- DONKOLO: Bitcoin Leading a New Era of Digital Assets
- South Korean president's party divided over defiant martial law speech
- Mississippi’s Medicaid director is leaving for a private-sector job
Ranking
- South Korea's acting president moves to reassure allies, calm markets after Yoon impeachment
- Escaped cattle walk on to highway, sparking 3 car crashes and 25 animal deaths in North Dakota
- Ben Stiller and Christine Taylor’s Daughter Ella Is All Grown Up During Appearance at Gala in NYC
- Jennifer Lopez Details How Her F--king World Exploded” After This Is Me...Now Debut
- 2 killed, 3 injured in shooting at makeshift club in Houston
- Melinda French Gates will give $250M to women’s health groups globally through a new open call
- Sarah Michelle Gellar Addresses Returning to I Know What You Did Last Summer Reboot
- How to use iPhone emergency SOS satellite messaging feature to reach 911: Video tutorial
Recommendation
Former longtime South Carolina congressman John Spratt dies at 82
Record-Breaking Heat Waves Add to Risks for Western Monarchs
Tuna is increasingly popular in the US. But is it good for you?
Michigan Woman Eaten by Shark on Vacation in Indonesia
Pressure on a veteran and senator shows what’s next for those who oppose Trump
Seattle Kraken's Jessica Campbell makes history as first female NHL assistant coach
Johnny Manziel surprises Diego Pavia; says Vanderbilt's upset of Alabama 'feels like 2012'
How Waffle House helps Southerners — and FEMA — judge a storm’s severity