Video of People Avoiding Bud Light in Cooler Goes Viral

Video footage purporting to show patrons at a Tennessee event largely avoiding drinking Bud Light has gone viral on social media.

For more than a month the beer brand has been the focus of a divisive debate after sending transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney a personalized can of its product.

In early April, Mulvaney shared a video on Instagram in which she explained that Bud Light had sent her a can with her face on it to commemorate 365 days of her living as a woman. Mulvaney's Days of Girlhood video series, which charts her first year of transitioning, has been a viral success.

The partnership drew condemnation from a number of social media users, who issued calls for a boycott. Amid the backlash, musician Kid Rock shared footage of himself opening fire on a stack of Bud Light cans.

Country music star Travis Tritt reacted by announcing he would no longer request any Anheuser-Busch products on his tour rider.

Amid the criticism and reports of plummeting sales, some Bud Light executives took a leave of absence, including marketing head Alissa Heinerscheid and Daniel Blake, who oversees marketing for Anheuser-Busch's mainstream brands.

Showing apparent evidence that the furor has not died down, OutKick founder Clay Travis on Monday shared a pair of videos from the WestFest music festival.

"Weekend experiment," reads the conservative commentator's caption. "Beers in cooler at Nashville area event. Pick which beer you want. No one would take the Bud Light all night long. Big issue going forward for Bud Light is many don't even want to be seen with product. They just pick another brand."

As music plays in the background, a voice can be heard explaining that there were two other brands in the cooler with the Bud Light cans—Yuengling and Michelob Ultra. It was noted in the first video that Michelob and Bud Light are produced by the same company.

It was not clarified whether the brands were in the cooler in equal quantities. In a follow-up video, said to have been taken more than three hours later in the VIP section of the event, it was stated that Bud Light was the only brand left.

The footage, which has been viewed more than 1.8 million times, drew praise from Bud Light detractors, who saw it as proof that their boycott calls had worked. Others mocked the videos.

In an April 14 press release, Anheuser-Busch CEO Brendan Whitworth said the company had no intention of dividing people.

It stated: "We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people. We are in the business of bringing people together over a beer."

The statement continued: "I care deeply about this country, this company, our brands, and our partners. I spend much of my time traveling across America, listening to and learning from our customers, distributors, and others.

"Moving forward, I will continue to work tirelessly to bring great beers to consumers across our nation."

Newsweek has contacted representatives of Anheuser-Busch via email for comment.

A bomb squad was recently dispatched to an Anheuser-Busch facility in Los Angeles following a threatening email.

An employee with the company told Patch Media that other threats were made to facilities across the U.S. after Mulvaney's Bud Light post.