April 25, 2023

Just watch the whole thing. As usual, John Oliver manages to make us laugh while making a very serious point. Via Yahoo:

Following a wave of backlash to partnering with trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney, Anheuser-Busch has released a new ad for Budweiser, relying on its signature Clydesdales and even invoking memories of 9/11. So on Sunday night, John Oliver scorched the company for being “so afraid of offending anyone” that they produce a commercial that seems as if an artificial intelligence program made it.

In response to a trend of videos showing conservatives destroying Bud Light they paid for and Anheuser-Busch already profited from, the company released a statement, not apologizing for the campaign, but not denouncing the backlash either. Or, as Oliver put it, “Maddeningly, Anheuser-Busch’s response to that ugliness has been to equivocate in the face of it.”

“We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer,” Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth said in part.

And here's the ad Oliver made in response:

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