It is hard to believe that more than three months since the Bud Light marketing disaster landed with a thud on social media, the controversy continues. There is a new addition to the cast of characters involved in the story. This time it is Hall of Fame baseball player Ken Griffey, Jr. He’s been sucked in whether he is aware of it or not.
Country Music star Garth Brooks was a part of the story when he declared he wouldn’t participate in the Bud Light boycott at his bar in Nashville. Kid Rock posted a video of himself shooting up cans of the beer in protest of their collaboration with trans activist and performance artist Dylan Mulvaney. Loyal Bud Light customers called for a boycott of the beer and it has been unusually successful. Bud Light is no longer the number one best-selling beer. It isn’t even in the top ten best-sellers. There may be no coming back from the controversy, especially since the CEO of Anheuser-Busch refuses to issue an apology to Bud Light drinkers. This could have been a one-day controversy if the CEO had immediately nipped it in the bud by admitting it was a mistake to prove that the corporate office dwellers have no idea who buys their beer. The woke marketing director who called the beer demographic too “fratty” and reached out to a trans Tik Tok influencer found out the hard way that her marketing collaboration was a bone-headed move. She no longer has a job with Bud Light.
Some stars, however, have been dragged into politics because a brand they endorse inadvertently becomes political. That has happened to Major League Baseball Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr. When he signed on with Budweiser, he probably didn’t give any thought to a beer promotion turning political. Budweiser has always been an All-American brand. It’s ads were classics – the Clydesdale horses, Spuds McKenzie, the frogs. All of them made the viewer smile. Now he is caught up in the backlash from the boycott and it is bleeding over into the Budweiser x Ken Griffey Jr. All-Star Collection.
No doubt Ken Griffey, Jr. thought he was signing on with an All-American beer company. He even did a video ad with his father, also a baseball legend, Ken Griffey, Sr. It was straight out of the old Budweiser playbook.
Even Griffey Jr., who likely wants no part of this controversy, can’t help any more than a grunting Travis Kelce or bringing back the talking frogs.
Now, the Hall of Fame Seattle Mariner great got dragged into the Bud Light backlash when the Budweiser account shared a link to a new merchandise collection.
“Look like an All-Star. Introducing the Budweiser x Ken Griffey Jr. All-Star Collection. Shop now at the link in bio,” the Tweet said.
An accompanying video showed Griffey Jr. recounting memories over a cold beer with his father, Griffey Sr. That’s pretty typical for the Budweiser playbook, but the company’s detractors (and former fans) aren’t ready to move on.
The video was part of a Father’s Day campaign.
A tweet advertising the merchandise caused a stir.
Look like an All-Star. Introducing the Budweiser x Ken Griffey Jr. All-Star Collection. Shop now at the link in bio. pic.twitter.com/BRMR50YexY
— Budweiser (@budweiserusa) July 6, 2023
No thanks, I prefer beer that knows the difference between men and women and mocks neither.
— Ron Duncan (@RonDuncan7) July 6, 2023
All you have to do is say you are sorry.
— Felipe (@Dr0pTableUsers) July 6, 2023
Good luck to Ken Griffey, Jr. He’s walked into a hornet’s nest.
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