The U.S. Air Force faced backlash on Twitter Thursday after using the heavily debated Yanny vs. Laurel meme in a tweet touting a mission carried out against Taliban forces in Afghanistan.
“The Taliban Forces in Farah city #Afghanistan would much rather have heard #Yanny or #Laurel than the deafening ‘BRRRT’ they got courtesy of our A10,” the Air Force tweeted from its official account.
The “Yanny vs. Laurel” debate is over a soundbite of robotic voices that some interpret as saying “Yanny” while others hear “Laurel. The audio clip took the Internet by storm on Wednesday, causing thousands of Twitter users to offer their assessments.
The Air Force tweet cited a report about A-10 Warthog aircraft conducting shows-of-force over Farah City, Afghanistan, while MQ-9 Reapers struck targets to fight off the Taliban from overtaking the city. The A-10, however, did not fire on Taliban fighters.
Social media users jumped to criticize the tweet, with some saying the attack should not be taken lightly and others bashing the Air Force for a cringeworthy comment.
“Afghan forces took heavy casualties points out @thomasawatkins , Perhaps not a lighthearted moment for America’s partners some suggest,” Barbara Starr, CNN Pentagon correspondent, tweeted Thursday.
Afghan forces took heavy casualties points out @thomaswatkins , Perhaps not a lighthearted moment for America’s partners some suggest. https://t.co/zIYAXnX44r
— Barbara Starr (@barbarastarrcnn) May 17, 2018
Obama-era National Security Council spokesperson Tommy Vietor also weighed in.
Don’t do this.
— Tommy Vietor (@TVietor08) May 17, 2018
CNN’s Jake Tapper also noted the odd nature of the tweet.
This is an unusual tweet https://t.co/Z7x2SigtQp
— Jake Tapper (@jaketapper) May 17, 2018
This is absurd for so many reasons, not least of which is that the AF is trying to spike the ball 17 years into a war. https://t.co/MLh5ynJF7A
— Mark Mazzetti (@MarkMazzettiNYT) May 17, 2018
This would be a terrible tweet even if the Taliban militants weren’t seriously challenging Afghan forces, the government only controlled 56 percent of the country, ANDSF numbers were sharply dropping and there appeared no end to the 17-year old war https://t.co/xjPMfFLilT
— Idrees Ali (@idreesali114) May 17, 2018
Others just let pictures do the talking.
— Fellow Travelers (@ftravelersblog) May 17, 2018
The tweet came up during a briefing with Dana White, the Pentagon’s top spokesperson.
“I haven’t seen that tweet. I will take a look at it, and I can come back to you,” she said. “But what’s important to understand is this is the Afghans’ fight. We are working by, with, and through these partners, and they are dying to secure their own future, and I think that shouldn’t be forgotten in any of this.”
Shortly after the briefing, the Air Force deleted the tweet from its official account and apologized for the post.
“We apologize for the earlier tweet regarding the A-10. It was made in poor taste and we are addressing it internally. It has since been removed,” the Air Force tweeted.
We apologize for the earlier tweet regarding the A-10. It was made in poor taste and we are addressing it internally. It has since been removed.
— U.S. Air Force (@usairforce) May 17, 2018
