Bud Light and Jaguar: what happens when brands enter the culture war
Kid Rock tells the story behind shooting cases of Bud Light and later befriending Anheuser-Busch's CEO, Shane Gillis talks about Bud Light's comeback and his loyalty to the brand, Tim Dillon describes culture-war exhaustion over Barbie and Bud Light, Sam Tallent takes up the Bud Light and Dylan Mulvaney fight, and the Protect Our Parks comics discuss Jaguar, brands and politics. The boycott became a reference point for how a product can turn into a political badge, and these conversations show both the anger and the fatigue it produced.
How does Kid Rock describe shooting cases of Bud Light? Show answer
He says it was not a campaign: he was just having fun and was angry, and he became the face of the boycott without claiming to lead anyone.
What happened between Kid Rock and Anheuser-Busch's CEO, in Kid Rock's telling? Show answer
They met backstage at a UFC event and became friends, and the CEO later visited him in Nashville with his top team.
Why did Kid Rock turn down Anheuser-Busch's money? Show answer
He told them he did not feel right taking it, saying no amount could make him change who he is or how people see him. He says he stays independent so no one can cancel him.
Why did Kid Rock let the boycott go? Show answer
He felt the company had got the message, he does not hold grudges, truck drivers and workers lost livelihoods, and he opposes cancel culture. He warns it starts again if the company goes down the same path.
What did Kid Rock say the company should do instead of apologizing? Show answer
Make fun of the situation in the old-school, funny Anheuser-Busch way, and give a plain answer that it should not stick its nose into polarizing conversations.
How does Tim Dillon think the Bud Light decision was made? Show answer
He guesses a marketing director, probably one or two people with a budget for influencers, decided to make the brand edgier while nobody else paid attention.
Why does Dillon say customers pushed back against Bud Light? Show answer
He says people felt a new world was being forced on them too quickly, and the brand was where they chose to push back.
What objection to the boycott comes up in the Sam Tallent conversation? Show answer
One of them asks why anyone cares who else likes a good product and where a boycotter would go, since a speaker says Coors has had rainbow cans forever.
What role does Rogan give Shane Gillis in the Bud Light story? Show answer
Rogan credits Gillis, who never dropped the beer during the boycott, with helping bring the brand back.
What was Rogan's first objection to the Jaguar executive's speech? Show answer
That a diversity and inclusion speech had nothing to do with making a good car, and that he does not want companies pushing politics from either side.
Why did Rogan take back his criticism of the Jaguar executive? Show answer
He learned the speech was given at a Pride event, so the executive was speaking correctly for that audience. The problem, he says, is when it is shown to a different audience online.
Why did Bud Light in particular hurt, according to Dillon? Show answer
His parents' generation trusted corporations completely; his father cried at a Budweiser commercial after 9/11 in which the Clydesdales took a knee.