Budweiser’s Dwyane Wade tribute was beautiful and also disgusting

Now that the emotion has subsided and the tears have all mostly dried up, can we maybe take a second to give that Budweiser ad the side-eye it so rightfully deserved?

You’ve seen the video by now. Dwyane Wade swapping “jerseys” with people whose lives he’s touched. Victims of gun violence. Poverty. Addiction. It’s powerful. It’s emotional. And for the first three minutes and fifty-five seconds, Budweiser navigates these harrowing tales beautifully, artfully, and produces what can arguably be described as a perfect tribute. Maybe the best athlete tribute ever. As you stare at the screen, tears literally pour down your face.

And then some shithead, corporate shill, Darren Rovell clone in marketing decides that what this heartfelt video needs is a fucking slogan.

Look, I get that sometimes the message isn’t gonna come from the ideal place. (Over at Deadspin, Laura Wagner presents a much more cynical—and maybe even more accurate—look at it.) We’ve reached a point where brands and life are sort of intertwined and we’ve accepted that companies are trying to sell us something at every turn. It’s depressing, but it’s life. Hell, the president of the United States uses his platform as a world leader to peddle hats. But on the most basic of levels, on the ground floor of expectations, is it too much to ask that a company practice subtlety? That they not slap a branded hashtag across real life fucking tragedy?

Heres a victim of systemic racism. Here’s a woman whose house burned down in a fire. Here’s a teenager whose brother was murdered in a horrific act of violence. Cheers! Don’t forget to buy some beer!

And if you wanna be particularly grossed out, try and wrap your mind around Budweiser using Dwyane Wade’s mom, whose life was practically destroyed by substance abuse, to hawk an addictive substance notable for destroying lives.

Again, capitalism is going to give you problematic messengers. That part is what it is. But when the message is being delivered on real tragedy, on lives ruined, on the casket of a child… maybe don’t brand it like it’s a talking frog. Maybe just put “Thank You” with your little logo under it and trust that we know who you are and what you want us to buy. Maybe, just maybe, brand the story of a kid being murdered in a school shooting with even an ounce of fucking tact.

Or maybe I’m expecting too much of a beer company.