..10:21 PM ET 05/06/99
.. Beer Ad in Gay Mag Draws Response
..........ST. LOUIS (AP) _ A Budweiser advertisement showing two men
.. holding hands in a free magazine for gays and lesbians has drawn so
.. much response that Anheuser-Busch Inc. set up special hotlines to
.. handle calls.
.....The ad for Bud Light in the April 22 issue of EXP magazine says
.. ``Be Yourself and Make It a Bud Light,'' and carries a tagline
.. saying ``Proud Sponsor of the St. Louis PrideFest '99.'' PrideFest
.. is a gay and lesbian festival held in June.
...........Shortly after the ad ran, leaders in the gay community began
.. distributing e-mail, urging people to call Anheuser-Busch in
.. support of the ad. The St. Louis brewer was so overwhelmed with
.. calls that it set up a hotline for supporters to use.
..Conservative Christian leader Jerry Falwell subsequently urged
.. his followers to call Anheuser-Busch, too.
......Let's keep the heat on Anheuser-Busch so that they understand
.. that pro-family Americans are terribly concerned about homosexual
.. images coming into our homes through reckless advertising
.. campaigns,'' Falwell wrote in his Falwell Confidential.
.............It's surprising to us that one print ad placed in select
.. gay-oriented magazines has attracted attention,'' the St. Louis
.. brewer said in a written statement. ``Today's consumer is not one
.. of a specific gender, race, geography or orientation. We appreciate
.. and respect the views of all our customers.''
...........Anheuser-Busch officials declined to comment about the results
.. of the calls or whether they will have any effect on further plans
.. for the advertisement.
...........Falwell was unavailable for comment Thursday, his spokesman
.. said.
