Anheuser-Busch’s decision to print the face of transgender influencer and activist Dylan Mulvaney on a can of Bud Light to celebrate her first anniversary since transitioning has created significant controversy.
The beverage company has faced vocal and pointed criticism online, including from Republican musician Kid Rock, who fired a gun at a case of Bud Lights in a video that has gone viral.
A number of conservative figures have also called for people to stop buying Bud Light products in response to the partnership with Mulvaney, who obtained a large following with her viral TikTok series, 365 Days of Girlhood.
Now there are reports that Bud Light’s sponsorship with sporting brands may be under threat.
Dylan Mulvaney attends the PFLAG 50th Anniversary Gala at The New York Marriott Marquis on March 3, 2023 in New York City. Cindy Ord/Getty Images
The Claim
The Dunning-Kruger Times reported that NASCAR was ending its $88 million sponsorship deal with Bud Light in the wake of the Mulvaney controversy.
The site said that “going woke, going broke” is the result of the Mulvaney can and that the motor racing sport would be looking to end its deal with Anheuser-Busch.
“Bud Light is a doomed brand,” said a Facebook post by the page America’s Last Line Of Defense, sharing the report.
The post had more than 2,600 reactions and generated over 400 comments. There was also a spike in Google searches for the question: “Did NASCAR drop bud light?”
The Facts
The Dunning-Kruger Times is a satirical site that pokes fun at the news of the day and the claims about NASCAR should be taken with a pinch of salt.
Its Facebook page, America’s Last Line of Defense, even has “satire” in its handle: @ALLODSatire.
And its website states: “Dunning-Kruger-Times.com is a subsidiary of the “America’s Last Line of Defense” network of parody, satire, and tomfoolery, or as Snopes called it before they lost their war on satire: Junk News.”
The story teases Rock over his shooting of the Bud Light cans, writing that it “didn’t do anything because he already bought it. I mean, they HAVE your money.”
They then quoted a supposed “drunken man-about-town and professional pickpocket” who joked that people who collect empty beer cans for build projects would not be happy to have Mulvaney’s face on a can.
There has been no public indication that NASCAR is dropping Bud Light or is considering doing so.
Newsweek reached out to NASCAR’s director of communications for comment via email.
The Ruling
Satire.
There is no evidence that NASCAR will be dropping Bud Light in the wake of the Dylan Mulvaney backlash.
The site making the claim, The Dunning-Kruger Times, is transparently satirical and was poking fun at the situation.
FACT CHECK BY NEWSWEEK