Chick-fil-A CEO Andrew Cathy sat down with NBC "Today" co-anchor Craig Melvin on Wednesday for his first broadcast interview. Asked about the company's position on equal rights, he said, "We're focused on hospitality, serving great-tasting food, and great service." He invited past protesters to come try the food. Melvin pressed: "You don't want to talk about that chapter in Chick-fil-A's history?" Cathy answered, "We're focused on serving everybody that comes in to eat with us." In 2012, Cathy's father, Dan Cathy, was the company's president. He said Chick-fil-A backed the "biblical definition" of the family. People then boycotted the chain over its donations to groups seen as opposing gay rights. In 2019, Chick-fil-A said it would focus its giving on education, homelessness, and hunger. Andrew Cathy became CEO in 2021. The chain has about 2,900 locations, and it's expanding into the UK, Canada, and Singapore.

Cathy Owes a Real Answer and a Written Pledge (Katie Couric, Andy Cohen, Peter Tatchell)

Critics say Cathy had a clear chance to state a position and passed, and UK campaigners still want a written pledge.

Critics say his silence on equal rights was an answer in itself. Former "Today" anchor Katie Couric called it "a non answer answer" on Instagram. She said a good follow-up would have been to ask Cathy whether he agrees with his father. Instagram commenter Brian Balthazar put it this way: "Not saying anything about equal rights is definitely saying something about equal rights."

Celebrities said he missed his chance. Bravo host Andy Cohen wrote, "THIS AIN'T IT DUDE. you had a chance to win us all back and you blew it." "RuPaul's Drag Race" judge Ross Mathews asked, "Too chicken to answer directly?" Actor Valerie Bertinelli said she's never tried the chain and has "no plans to change that."

UK campaigners want a written pledge. Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell led a protest in March at the chain's first London restaurant, in Kingston upon Thames. His foundation wants a public pledge that the chain won't fund groups opposing LGBTQ+ equality. "Every letter and request for a meeting has been ignored," Tatchell said. Critics still point to past gifts to the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and Focus on the Family.

Serving Everyone Is the Right Answer (Randy DeSoto, Andrew Cathy)

Defenders say Cathy refused to renounce his family's faith and gave a fair answer for a restaurant.

He didn't have to disown his father. Western Journal writer Randy DeSoto called Cathy's reply "the perfect response." DeSoto wrote that Melvin was "asking Andrew Cathy to recant his father's Christian views."

Everyone is welcome, and that's what a restaurant should offer. Cathy told Melvin, "I think that everybody that will be willing to walk in the door, they'll see that they're welcome to come eat with us." Some viewers agreed, saying a place with real hospitality serves everyone. The company said back in 2012 that it would "leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena."

He stood by the company's Christian purpose. Cathy said in the same interview that the company's purpose is "to glorify God by being a faithful steward."

NBC Set Him Up (Curtis Houck)

Media critics say the network turned a business interview into a trap.

Critics say NBC tried to ambush him. Curtis Houck, managing editor of NewsBusters, called the segment "wholly intended to be an ambush." "NBC should be ashamed of itself," he said.

He says NBC dwelt too long on 2012. "It's incredibly disappointing that Melvin dwelt on it for that much of the package," Houck said. By his count, NBC spent just over 90 seconds of a roughly six-minute segment on the topic. He called that time "harassing him over his family's Christian roots supporting traditional marriage."

Where This Lands

Couric says Cathy gave a non-answer, and Cohen says he blew his chance to win people back. Tatchell wants a written pledge that the chain won't fund groups opposing LGBTQ+ equality. DeSoto says Cathy answered the right way, by welcoming everyone without disowning his father's faith. Houck blames NBC and calls the segment an ambush. Cathy never told Melvin where he stands on equal rights. Chick-fil-A and NBC hadn't responded to Fox Business by Wednesday evening. The chain is still expanding into the UK, and Tatchell's foundation is still asking for that pledge.

Sources