By Tripp Mickle
A controversial Bud Light label went through at least five
layers of approval before it landed on the front of beer bottles
and sparked a social media storm among consumers concerned it
encouraged rape.
Anheuser-Busch InBev NV stopped production of the label Tuesday
night, ending its two-month run describing Bud Light is "The
perfect beer for removing 'no' from your vocabulary for the
night."
The slogan made its debut amid a national push, especially on
college campuses, to discourage sexual assault and a national "No
Means No" campaign sponsored by the American Association of State
Colleges and Universities.
AB InBev evaluated a recall of bottles with the offensive phrase
but said it decided against it because the label doesn't pose a
health or public safety concern, a spokesman said. The company
estimates less than 1% of Bud Light bottles in circulation feature
the label. It is one of about 140 labels in circulation in an edgy
campaign dubbed "Up for Whatever."
Anti-sexual assault activists expressed dismay over the
label.
"I have no idea what broke down in their internal review, but
certainly there was a serious break down," said Scott Berkowitz of
the anti-sexual assault non-profit Rape, Abuse and Incest National
Network. He said alcohol doesn't cause incidents of sexual assault
but "it's common that participants have been drinking and some
rapes happen against incapacitated victims." He encouraged AB InBev
to "make amends" for the mistake by using its creative talent and
advertising budget to discouraging sexual assault in the same way
it discourages drunken driving.
The company conceded yesterday that the label, which started to
generate viral anger and disbelief on Tuesday, was a mistake.
Still, it didn't explain exactly how it could have passed muster in
a system where such ads and messages had to be approved by many
layers.
Initially, AB InBev spread the blame, noting that its
advertising agency BBDO, which handles Bud Light's "Up for
Whatever" campaign wrote the label, as it has hundreds of others
that are affixed to individual bottles that are randomly packed
together typically in six and 12 packs. BBDO declined to
comment.
AB InBev also noted that the labels passed through the U.S.
Alcohol Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau. That agency doesn't review
what it calls "puffery," a spokesman said. It confirms that labels
provide correct information to consumers about a beer's
identity.
Internally, AB InBev said the labels are reviewed by Bud Light's
marketing team, members of Anheuser-Busch's legal team, corporate
social responsibility division and an advertising code
committee.
In a statement, Bud Light Vice President Alexander Lambrecht
said the label's "message missed the mark, and we regret it. We
would never condone disrespectful or irresponsible behavior."
Bud Light began putting individual labels on its beers in
December as part of its "Up for Whatever" campaign. Launched in
early 2014, the edgy campaign promotes spontaneity and encourages
people to make Bud Light the centerpiece of wild nights such as the
one featured in this year's Super Bowl ad. It shows a man in his
20s who goes from having a Bud Light at a bar to playing a
life-size game of Pac-Man.
The brand brought the campaign to life last year when it turned
a town in Colorado into Whatever, USA. It expanded on it further
this year by putting messages on bottles above #UpForWhatever in
hopes of fostering a social media conversation among beer drinkers
about what they do when they drink Bud Light.
AB InBev Chief Executive Carlos Brito has praised the Whatever,
USA promotion for helping engage more than 2 million 21- to 27-year
olds. He also credited "Up for Whatever" with helping the brand
"reengage millennials and drive the relevance of Bud Light to their
lifestyles." He said during a February earnings call that it helped
the brand gain share in the light beer category.
But the campaign hasn't been without its hitches. In addition to
this week's label brouhaha, guests at the company's Whatever, USA
event last year faced three-hour delays departing Crested Butte,
Colo.
The company, which is holding this year's event in Catalina
Island, Calif., plans to space out chartered flights more to avoid
a similar issue.
As for the labels, a company spokesman said Bud Light plans to
review all 140 labels it currently has in circulation. It also
plans to evaluate the way it reviews future labels so that it can
prevent making a similar mistake in the future.
Write to Tripp Mickle at Tripp.Mickle@wsj.com
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