Hilton stands by his ad in a CalMatters interview
Steve HiltonRepublican candidate for governor of California
Steve Hilton told CalMatters that anything strong gets a strong reaction and that people see that in art and in everything. CalMatters reported that he brushed off the backlash as a minor disagreement with fellow Republicans on strategy.
“Anything that's strong has a strong reaction.”
Reporting
Where this statement fits
Was Steve Hilton's "Just Try It" campaign ad appropriate?
On October 1, 2026, Republican candidate for governor Steve Hilton posted a 53-second ad titled Just Try It, California. Two young women sit in a dimly lit bedroom, one coaxes the other to try something new, and the scene ends with a mail-in ballot marked for Hilton over Democrat Xavier Becerra. Sonja Shaw and Michael Gates, who have campaigned alongside Hilton, and the pastor Jack Hibbs criticized the ad, Democrats including Rep. Robert Garcia denounced it, and Hilton and Spencer Pratt defended it. Hilton said the campaign was trying to make a point in a provocative, satirical way and that it grieves him that some viewers were upset. The dispute is over whether the ad was an appropriate way to campaign.
Source and context
Reporting
About this source
CalMatters report by Jeanne Kuang. It quotes Shaw's post, Gates's statement and Jack Hibbs's remarks, a Monday phone interview with Hilton, and Republican ad maker Fred Davis. It reports that filmmaker Gabriel Mann made the ads for $125,000, that Hilton said the series uses real actors and is not AI-generated, and that more ads are coming.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
CalMatters reported that Sonja Shaw and Jack Hibbs, who support Hilton, had criticized the ad on social media.
After the quotation
CalMatters also reported that Hilton said the series uses real actors and was not generated with artificial intelligence, and that more ads are coming.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case asks whether the Just Try It ad was an appropriate way to campaign. Hilton answered the backlash by saying strong work draws a strong reaction, as art does, which treats the criticism as the expected result of a bold ad rather than a sign it was wrong, so we labeled it Defended or excused.
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More from this case
Read the full caseJack Hibbs calls the Hilton ad grotesque and insensitive but says he will still vote for Hilton
“Steve Hilton's "Try It" ad? Grotesque. Insensitive. Somebody on his team made an ignorant decision, and I'm furious. But for California's greater good, for your good, I'm still voting for Steve. His policies are statesmanship-like. No one matches him. This election, from the top of the ballot down, needs your vote for TEAM RED because Team Blue has destroyed this with 100% total control of California for over sixteen years now.”Read statement
Steve Hilton says the ad was a satirical way to make a point and asks critics for grace
“But it's also true that many people, many of you, may have been offended by that ad. Now, of course, that was never anybody's intention. We were trying to make a point in a provocative way, in a satirical way. No one was ever trying to offend anyone. But I know that many of you were offended, and I've had those conversations, and it grieves me to understand how that made you feel. And I really want to say to you very directly that I get it, and I understand it, and it grieves me that you've been upset by this. But I also want to ask you to understand what we are doing, why we're doing it, and to ask for some grace as well as understanding.”Read statement
Becerra campaign spokesman Jonathan Underland calls the Hilton ad creepy
“MAGA is melting down over Steve Hilton's creepy ad because they're finally seeing him for the sellout he really is, willing to abandon his own twisted values to get ahead.”Read statement
Cite this record
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- The Dispute Index
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- Hilton stands by his ad in a CalMatters interview
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- https://disputeindex.com/events/4953-steve-hilton-told-calmatters-that-anything-strong-gets
Last updated marks the most recent saved version of this published statement.
The Dispute Index. "Hilton stands by his ad in a CalMatters interview". First published: 2026-10-06. Last updated: 2026-10-06. https://disputeindex.com/events/4953-steve-hilton-told-calmatters-that-anything-strong-gets