The 2018 feud between the Steak-umm Twitter account and Neil deGrasse Tyson reignited a couple of days ago. Steak-umm took exception to one of Tyson’s tweets, responding to his statement that “science is true, “whether or not you believe in it” with “log off bro.”
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Shots fired. The Steak-umm Twitter account went on to expand on their initial tweet, explaining their reasoning for asking Tyson to step away from the internet for the day. By oversimplifying science and presenting it as dogma rather than a process, he was just going to increase skepticism during an already dangerously high period of science denial.
The Steak-umm Twitter account manager wasn’t the only person on Twitter to find objection to Tyson’s statement. However, because people still aren’t entirely used to corporate brands stepping so far out of their lane yet (though it’s becoming an increasingly popular publicity stunt as it clearly works), it was the Steak-umm response that really blew up.
After all, a frozen food brand feuding with renowned astrophysicist on the nature of science and philosophy is a pretty hilarious concept, even as brands increasingly allow their social media managers to go off book and post about whatever the hell they like.
The whole thing finally reached critical mass today, hitting viral status on Twitter as people continued to cackle over the absurdity of the whole thing—and how the Steak-umm account actually made some really good points.
Steak-umm did go on to clarify that they are actually a “brand selling products” and therefore “everything we do is based in self interest”.
A strategy that’s clearly working out for them.
