Internet Nostalgia

Let’s Revisit the Milkshake Duck

It’s not even real. But it’s immortal.

Welcome to part 26 of our Internet Nostalgia series, which looks back at phenomena that captured the internet’s imagination and attention for a fleeting moment and then vanished as everyone moved on to something else. This series looks back at those olden times and what they told us about the internet and ourselves. If you have a suggested topic, email me at williamfleitch@yahoo.com. Last week: David After Dentist. This week: Milkshake Duck.

When: June 12, 2016 until … forever.

The Story: Ben Ward is an Australian cartoonist who has a very funny Twitter account at @pixelatedboat. He had noticed an amusing trend: Normal regular previously anonymous human beings suddenly becoming well-known on social media … and then, just as quickly, having something controversial or “problematic” show up in their past that makes everyone feel foolish for lavishing so much attention on someone they previously had now known. He then crafted the following Tweet: