On April 6, 2023, a Twitter user with the handle @BUD_LIGHT claimed the beer brand hated gays and trans people and then asked people to buy the beer.
"We hate gays and trans people now. Please buy our beer," the tweet said.
We found the claim to be satirical since it came from a Twitter account that labelled itself the "Most Suspended Man on Twitter Parody/Satire," among other descriptions. Moreover, the verified account of the beer brand, @budlight, did not have that tweet on its real feed. Its last tweet, as of this writing, was on April 1, 2023, and its pinned tweet was posted on March 14, 2023.
The claim came amidst the backdrop of the beer brand recently facing backlash from conservatives and right-wing people after the brand partnered with trans TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney to promote the company's "March Madness" contest. She posted a video of Bud Light beer cans that the company sent her as a gift.
This did not sit well with conservatives, who called for a boycott of Bud Light. Some, like singer-songwriter Kid Rock, posted an expletive-ridden video of him shooting cases of Bud Light.
The backlash gave rise to various satirical posts, including this one that claimed Anheuser-Busch fired its entire marketing staff.
Anheuser-Busch, the company that brews Bud Light beer, defended its partnership with Mulvaney. In a statement, the company said it partnered with hundreds of influencers who connect with various demographics.
"From time to time, we produce unique commemorative cans for fans and for brand influencers, like Dylan Mulvaney," the statement said. "This commemorative can was a gift to celebrate a personal milestone and is not for sale to the general public."
Given that there was no evidence Bud Light tweeted the hateful comment and given that the claim originated on a satire/parody account, we label the claim "Labeled Satire."