Podcaster Joe Rogan has criticized the latest “pro-American” Bud Light commercial for being “stupid and cliche” and a superficial attempt by the company to recover from Dylan Mulvaney’s backlash.
Speaking at “The Joe Rogan Experience” Thursday, Rogan said the identity of the brand was unclear. “We don’t know who you really are,” he said.
The commercial released last week shows a Clydesdale galloping through rural American cities with a patriotic voiceover and was released after a collaboration between Bud Light and trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney fell through.
In the days after that partnership was announced, $6 billion of parent company Anheuser-Busch’s market cap was wiped out in response to the popular lager that Mulvaney used as a spokesperson.
While Rogan was largely critical of Bud Light throughout the saga, he said last week that the controversy was overblown.
Joe Rogan criticized the latest “pro-American” Bud Light commercial for being “silly and cliche.”
The commercial features iconic Clydesdales galloping through iconic American sets
Commenting on the new commercial during a podcast episode Thursday with fellow comedian Jim Breuer, Rogan said, “It’s like the f*****g dumbest pro-America rah-rah. For example, we don’t know who you really are.’
“It’s so stupid and cliché. It hurts my feelings, it’s so stupid,” he added. “This is a company in deep trouble.”
The pair watched the commercial together and scoffed at the superficial images of farmers and veterans sharing beer.
“Look, you’ve got the prairies, the ocean, you’ve got a Clydesdale running down the street,” Rogan said in the video.
“I’d respect this if they had this and Dylan Mulvaney just starts cartwheeling it in the frame,” Rogan joked.
He noted how the company was confused about who it should be marketing to, and referenced comments made before the controversy last month by the company’s VP of marketing, Alissa Heinerscheid.
“There are interviews with the lady who is the head of Bud Light, who talks about why they did it, and about the old kind of student culture associated with Bud Light, rejecting the humor of the people who love Bud Light” said Rogan.
A partnership between Bud Light and trans influencer Dylan Mulvaney (pictured) failed, wiping $6 billion off parent company Anheuser-Busch’s market cap
In a video explaining the company’s marketing strategy, Heinerscheid said she wanted to update Bud Light’s image by eliminating its “fratty” connotation.
Rogan suggested that rather than alienate that group, the company should have made a more sincere effort to advocate for inclusion.
“If she just said, ‘Anyone can love Bud Light, America is the freedom to be who the fuck you want to be,’ if that’s what they said, I’d say, ‘OK, great,'” he said.
“I hate you even more now,” he added. “It’s so obvious what they’re doing. They had to let that rest for a while.’
A op-ed published by Bloomberg last week described Bud Light’s move as a “new low in company courage.”
“Kicking a political hornet’s nest for clicks and giggling before running away is no way to elevate a brand or promote a good cause,” wrote Ben Schott, the publication’s Ads and Brands columnist.
The Budweiser Clydesdales have been featured in the Budweiser Super Bowl ad for over 30 years
Commenting on the partnership last Wednesday, Rogan argued that the brand should be able to partner with whoever it wants.
He said he thought it was “funny” that people were “super outraged” given that there were far more pressing issues in the country.
‘How did that happen?’ he asked. ‘I think it’s lame. Because I think that person is crazy. But if you want to hire a crazy person like, who gives as**t. It’s kind of hilarious.’
Rogan said he understood what the beer maker was doing by using “people who are popular” to market to different demographics. Mulvaney has over 10 million followers on TikTok.