Dive Brief:
- Bud Light intended to write a humorous St. Patrick's Day tweet Tuesday, but it wasn't well received by Twitter followers.
- The tweet, making a joke alluding to consent, read: “On #StPatricksDay you can pinch people who don’t wear green. You can also pinch people who aren’t #UpForWhatever.”
- Twitter users took offense to the joke, saying it conveyed the wrong message about consent and bodily contact. Bud Light quickly deleted the tweet after the onslaught of negative responses.
Dive Insight:
Bud Light isn't the first brand to make a snafu on Twitter—or the first to accidentally make light of violence, such as DiGiorno's #WhyIStayed mistake. What's even more significant is that this isn't Bud Light's first dip into hot water over it's #UpforWhatever campaign. The brand encountered a PR nightmare after its Whatever, USA event stranded residents in the middle of Colorado. Bud Light doesn't seem to be deterred, however—it's planning another Whatever, USA event for 2015.