Chick-fil-A CEO Andrew Cathy said the company welcomes customers regardless of their background when NBC Today co-anchor Craig Melvin questioned him about the chain’s approach to LGBTQ rights during a Wednesday interview. Cathy emphasized hospitality and service rather than giving a direct answer about the company’s position on equal rights.
“We’re focused on hospitality, serving great-tasting food and great service,” Cathy said, according to the interview excerpt. When Melvin asked how he would respond to people who had protested the chain, Cathy said anyone willing to enter a restaurant was welcome and that the company wanted to provide a good meal and hospitality.
Melvin also raised Chick-fil-A’s history of controversy over same-sex marriage. In 2012, Andrew Cathy’s father, then-CEO Dan Cathy, publicly expressed support for traditional marriage. That statement prompted protests and boycotts. The company also drew criticism for donations to Christian organizations that critics said opposed LGBTQ rights.
The interview revisited those earlier disputes as part of a segment about Chick-fil-A’s background and business growth. Melvin asked whether Andrew Cathy wanted to address that history and pressed him on the company’s official position. Cathy’s answers, as described in the source report, focused on serving customers and welcoming them into the restaurants rather than clarifying a specific policy position on LGBTQ issues.
Curtis Houck, managing editor of NewsBusters, criticized the interview in comments to Fox News Digital. Houck characterized the focus on the controversy as an ambush and argued that the segment gave too much attention to the issue. Those remarks represent Houck’s assessment of the interview, not a statement from NBC.
Former Today anchor Katie Couric also commented on the program’s Instagram post. She described Cathy’s response as a “non answer” and suggested Melvin could have followed up by asking whether Andrew Cathy agreed with his father’s 2012 remarks.
The source report notes that Chick-fil-A maintains Christian elements in its corporate identity, including its practice of closing restaurants on Sundays. It also says Cathy described the company’s Christian mission as an anchor during the interview. The company’s stated corporate purpose refers to glorifying God and positively influencing people connected with the business.
The company’s charitable giving changed in 2019 after criticism over its support for the Fellowship of Christian Athletes and the Salvation Army. Fox News Digital reported at the time that Chick-fil-A would end donations to those groups and redirect charitable contributions toward education, homelessness and hunger initiatives.
The source also reports that Chick-fil-A’s current corporate policies prohibit employment discrimination based on sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression. That employment policy is distinct from the direct question Melvin asked about the company’s position on equal rights.
Fox News Digital said it contacted NBC, Andrew Cathy and Chick-fil-A for comment but had not received responses at the time of publication. The supplied report does not include a direct response from those parties to the criticism of the interview or further explanation of the company’s position.
