Anheuser-Busch CEO Breaks Long Silence Amid Dylan Mulvaney PR Crisis

After nearly two weeks of backlash, including threats of a boycott movement and significant losses in market value to his company, Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth issued a statement related to Bud Light’s controversial decision to partner with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, but did not make mention of Mulvaney, transgenderism — or offer an apology to offended customers.

The controversy erupted at the start of the month when Mulvaney, a man who claims to be a woman, announced on Instagram: “Bud Light sent me possibly the best gift ever: a can with my face on it.” The video also included the hashtag #budlightpartner. In the days and weeks that followed, critics blasted Bud Light for its tone-deaf marketing and beer drinkers passed over it for other brands.

“We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people,” Whitworth said in a statement Friday. “We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer.”

Whitworth said that he is responsible “for ensuring every consumer feels proud of the beer we brew” and that the company proudly supports “our communities, military, first responders, sports fans, and hard-working Americans everywhere.” Whitworth added that he spends a lot of time “listening to and learning from our customers, distributors, and others.”

The statement failed to directly address the controversy that sent the company into a 13-day public relations crisis in the first place — their decision to collaborate with a man who has achieved internet fame by pretending to be a woman for the last year. (Read more from “Anheuser-Busch CEO Breaks Long Silence Amid Dylan Mulvaney PR Crisis” HERE)

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