Milkshake Duck
In
pixelatedboat @pixelatedboat The whole internet loves Milkshake Duck, a lovely duck that drinks milkshakes! *5 seconds later* We regret to inform you the duck is racist
12 June 2016[7]
The phrase is derived from a Twitter post made on 12 June 2016 by Ben Ward, an Australian cartoonist using the online handle "pixelatedboat".[7] His Twitter joke describes a fictional Internet viral phenomenon of a "lovely duck that drinks milkshakes" which is then immediately discovered to be racist. Ward stated the joke was partially influenced by the Chewbacca Mask Lady.[8][9][10]
Notable instances
An early example of the phenomenon was observed in October 2016 with
The demonstration of the independently developed video game
American rapper and singer
Shortly after his webcomic Strange Planet began to achieve viral success in early 2019, US cartoonist
In 2021, comedian Jensen Karp went viral for a tweet about finding what appeared to be a shrimp tail in his Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal. He was later revealed as an alleged abuser by numerous other Twitter accounts.[22]
The "reverse milkshake duck"
In October 2018, some news outlets used the term "reverse milkshake duck" to describe the reversal of one's public image from problematic to positive.
That was my Mom. Sometimes the people we love do things that hurt us without realizing it. Let's turn this around. I respect and #BelieveWomen. I never have and never will support #HimToo. I'm a proud Navy vet, Cat Dad and Ally. Also, Twitter, your meme game is on point.[25]
The Verge writer Devon Maloney was one of the first to put a name to the reversal,[26] saying, "In what may have been the internet's first-ever reverse milkshake-ducking, Pieter himself finally logged on a few hours later to clear his name once and for all."[27]
Related concepts
A related concept to "milkshake duck" is that of the "problematic fave", a phrase originating on
In dictionaries
In December 2017, the phrase was a runner-up in Oxford Dictionaries' "word of the year", losing out to "youthquake".[3] In January 2018, Australia's Macquarie Dictionary named "milkshake duck" its 2017 "word of the year".[31]
The phrase was added to Dictionary.com and described as "a person (or thing) who becomes extremely popular on the internet for some positive reason, but as their popularity takes off and people dig into their past, they quickly become an object of outrage and hatred."[32]
References
- ^ Hathaway, Jay (13 June 2017). "What's a Milkshake Duck, and why is everyone talking about it?". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 13 August 2019. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
- ^ Tait, Amelia (20 August 2017). "The internet dictionary: what is a Milkshake Duck?". New Statesman. Archived from the original on 1 September 2019. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
- ^ a b "Youthquake' declared word of the year by Oxford Dictionaries". BBC News. 15 December 2017. Archived from the original on 5 November 2019. Retrieved 1 October 2019.
- ^ "Word of the Year 2017: the shortlist". Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 21 May 2019. Retrieved 30 January 2018.
- ^ IPC Media. Archivedfrom the original on 29 December 2018. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
- ^ a b c Peters, Micah (3 September 2018). "The Rapid Rise and Fall of Doja Cat in the Era of "Cancel" Culture". The Ringer. Archived from the original on 2 December 2019. Retrieved 4 September 2018.
- ^ a b Ward, Ben [@pixelatedboat] (12 June 2016). "The whole internet loves Milkshake Duck, a lovely duck that drinks milkshakes! *5 seconds later* We regret to inform you the duck is racist" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 5 July 2019. Retrieved 10 February 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ from the original on 20 December 2017. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
- ^ a b c O'Neil, Luke (24 June 2017). "A Conversation with the Guy Who Invented the Milkshake Duck Meme". Esquire. Archived from the original on 15 December 2017. Retrieved 4 December 2022.
- ^ Koerber, Brian (15 September 2017). "Milkshake Duck: We need to stop idolizing unremarkable people on the internet". Mashable. Archived from the original on 25 December 2017. Retrieved 23 October 2017.
- ^ Frank, Allegra (12 June 2017). "Designer of cyberpunk indie The Last Night speaks out as Twitter history causes stir". Polygon. Archived from the original on 12 June 2017. Retrieved 8 April 2019.
In no way is The Last Night a game against feminism or any form of equality," [Soret] continued. "A lot of things changed for me these last years. The fictional setting of the game does challenge techno-social progress as a whole but certainly not trying to promote regressive ideas.
- Complex Media. Archivedfrom the original on 22 January 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
- ^ a b Bote, Joshua (29 August 2018). "Doja Cat Comes Under Fire for Defending Homophobic Language in Tweet". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Archived from the original on 7 May 2020. Retrieved 29 August 2018.
- Complex. Archivedfrom the original on 12 June 2020. Retrieved 30 August 2018.
- ^ Kelly, Tiffany (8 April 2019). "The internet's favorite new comic strip has been ruined by this old anti-abortion tweet". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 8 November 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
- ^ Asarch, Steven (10 April 2019). "The artist behind the 'Strange Planet' webcomic sparks controversy with pro-life tweet". Newsweek. Archived from the original on 23 December 2019. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
- ^ Kelly, Tiffany (9 April 2019). "'Strange Planet' comics artist responds to abortion controversy". The Daily Dot. Archived from the original on 24 August 2019. Retrieved 23 June 2019.
- ^ Binion, Billy (10 February 2021). "The Zoom Cat Lawyer Used Federal Agents To Torment a Former Lover With Drug Raids and Bogus Charges". Reason. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
- ^ Scott, Nate (10 February 2021). "The Cat Lawyer has been Milkshake Ducked". USA Today. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
- ^ McCarter, Reid (10 February 2021). "The Zoom kitten lawyer has been milkshake ducked in record time". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
- ^ "Why does the sentence "Zoom cat lawyer got milkshake-ducked" make sense in modern English?". ABC Radio Perth. Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 10 February 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
- ^ a b c Romano, Aja (25 March 2021). "What's a Milkshake Duck? Everything is a Milkshake Duck". Vox. Retrieved 20 September 2022.
- ^ a b O'Neil, Luke (9 October 2018). "#HimToo: how an attempt to criticize #MeToo went delightfully wrong". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 26 February 2019. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ^
- Flynn, Meagan (9 October 2018). "'This is MY son': Navy vet horrified as mom's tweet miscasts him as #HimToo poster boy — and goes viral". The Washington Post. Archived from the original on 10 October 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- Hoffman, Ashley (9 October 2018). "'That Doesn't Represent Me.' The Man Whose Mom Made Him the Face of a Viral #HimToo Meme Wants No Part of It". Time. Archived from the original on 10 October 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ^ Hanson, Pieter [@Thatwasmymom] (9 October 2018). "That was my Mom. Sometimes the people we love do things that hurt us without realizing it. Let's turn this around. I respect and #BelieveWomen. I never have and never will support #HimToo. I'm a proud Navy vet, Cat Dad and Ally. Also, Twitter, your meme game is on point" (Tweet). Retrieved 10 February 2023 – via Twitter.
- ^ a b Schwedel, Heather (9 October 2018). "Why Twitter's #HimToo Mother-and-Son Saga Was a Satisfying Social Media Moment". Slate. Archived from the original on 10 October 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ^ Maloney, Devon (9 October 2018). "Viral mom's #HimToo post about her Navy vet son backfires incredibly". The Verge. Archived from the original on 10 October 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ^ Romano, Aja (9 October 2018). "How a mom's "This Is My Son" anti-feminist brag went viral — and completely backfired". Vox. Archived from the original on 10 October 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ^ Morris, Wesley (October 3, 2018). "The Morality War". The New York Times. Archived from the original on November 8, 2018. Retrieved November 7, 2018.
- ^ a b Alexander, Julia (5 September 2018). "Everyone is a problematic fave and everyone will Milkshake Duck". Polygon. Archived from the original on 5 September 2018. Retrieved 5 September 2018.
- ^
- Webb, Tiger (15 January 2018). "Why 'milkshake duck' is the perfect choice for word of the year". ABC News. Archived from the original on 14 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- "The Committee's Choice for Word of the Year 2017 goes to..." Macquarie Dictionary. 15 January 2018. Archived from the original on 15 January 2018. Retrieved 15 January 2018.
- "'Milkshake duck' wins Australia word prize". BBC News. 2018. Archived from the original on 10 October 2018. Retrieved 10 October 2018.
- ^ "Milkshake Duck Meaning & Origin | Slang by Dictionary.com". Dictionary.com. Retrieved 21 August 2022.