On April 6, 2023, the website Dunning-Kruger Times published an article asserting that the CEO of Anheuser-Busch, the manufacturer of Budweiser beer, had resigned because Bud Light sales plummeted:
Anheuser Busch CEO Resigns As Bud Light Sales Plummet To Record Low
The shakeup at Anheuser Busch continues in the wake of what may have been the dumbest thing a company could ever conceivably do. CEO Augustus Anheuser III left the corporate headquarters in shame after tendering his resignation.
"The whole thing is ultimately my fault," said Anheuser, "I should have never approved that campaign."
Despite being widely shared on social media, the story is false. The Dunning-Kruger Times is part of a network of websites and social media accounts called America's Last Line of Defense, which describes its content as satirical and fictional:
Everything on this website is fiction. It is not a lie and it is not fake news because it is not real. If you believe that it is real, you should have your head examined. Any similarities between this site's pure fantasy and actual people, places, and events are purely coincidental and all images should be considered altered and satirical.
We note, as well, that the photograph used in the published article on Dunning-Kruger Times and in social media posts is not of the CEO or anyone associated with Anheuser-Busch, but rather Jerry Sandusky, a convicted child molester.
The story about Anheuser-Busch's CEO resigning was a follow-up to a previous story on Dunning-Kruger times that reported — again, falsely — that Anheuser-Busch had fired its entire marketing team. These satirical articles were prompted by controversy over the company's partnering with transgender TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney to promote Bud Light's "March Madness" contest.
For background, here is why we sometimes write about satire/humor.