Michel Doukeris, CEO of Anheuser-Busch InBev, addressed the controversy surrounding Bud Light’s promotion to Dylan Mulvaney on a conference call Thursday, saying it was “not a formal campaign.”
Anheuser-Busch products will no longer be served in some Chicago gay bars amid the beer giant’s distancing from transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
2Bears Tavern Group, which owns four gay bars in the Windy City, announced Anheuser-Busch InBev’s “abandonment of its support” for Dylan Mulvaney on Thursday.
The organization will no longer serve Anheuser-Busch drinks in its bars, including Bud Light, Goose Island 312 and Busch Light.
Anheuser-Busch teamed up with Mulvaney in March, sending her a personalized beer pack as part of an ad for March Madness and Mulvaney’s first anniversary of her gender reassignment.
PROGRESSIVE LGBT GROUP PRESSES BUD LIGHT TO RENEW TRANSGENDER SUPPORT WITHIN THE DYLAN MULVANEY FALLOUT
2Bears Tavern Group, which owns four gay bars in the Windy City, called out Anheuser-Busch InBev’s “abandonment of its support” for transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney. (Google Maps / Google Maps)
The marketing move resulted in Anheuser-Busch losing around $5 billion in market value and receiving significant boycotts from conservative drinkers.
AB InBev CEO Michel Doukeris downplayed his company’s partnership with Mulvaney to investors Thursday, citing misinformation circulating on social media.
“We need to get the facts straight, this was a can, an influencer, a post and not a campaign,” Doukeris explained during a conference call.
Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth issued a statement on the controversy in April, saying his company “never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people.”
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Bud Light has faced backlash from longtime clients over its recent campaign featuring transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney. (Instagram/Fox News/Fox News)
2Bears Tavern Group called Whitworth’s comments “reprehensible and divisive,” along with Anheuser-Busch’s move to furlough two executives involved in the campaign.
“Anheuser-Busch’s decision to end its support for Mulvaney, in response to ignorant and hateful objections from some of its customers, demonstrates how little Anheuser-Busch cares about the LGBTQIA+ community and transgender people in particular, the country’s relentless attacks were exposed,” the statement said.
“CEO Brendan Whitworth’s apology that Anheuser-Busch ‘never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people’ was tantamount to saying that the rights and safety of transgender people are issues worth discussing,” added add the explanation.
Bud Light signage outside a bar in New York City. (Roberto Machado Noa/LightRocket via Getty Images/Getty Images)
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Anheuser-Busch told Fox News Digital that they have historically supported the LGBTQ+ community and will continue to do so.
“We remain committed to the programs and partnerships we have forged with organizations over decades to advance economic prosperity in a range of communities, including those in the LGBTQ+ community,” the spokesperson said.
Fox Business’ Chris Pandolfo contributed to this report.