'Good Morning America' Just Ruined An Iconic Meme Once And For All
But that's none of our business...
For a meme, the life cycle is pretty standard. Something funny happens on Twitter or Tumblr; it starts getting some attention; it pops up on Facebook; that aunt who hates Obama posts it, not knowing what it is; a major publication writes an article about it; and then it dies. It's part of the internet that memes come and go, they live and die, and hopefully they stay dead.
Another key part of the world of memes is that it not a place for adults. Memes are for teenagers and the really hip 20-somethings. Nothing good happens when adults get their hands on them, and "Good Morning America" proved that.
Following The Cleveland Cavaliers' NBA Championship win, "Good Morning America" tweeted the photo of him crying, asking how it stacked up against other memes.
One of the memes is Kermit the Frog drinking tea, or as he's known in The United States of Memes, "But that's none of my business."
This Kermit meme has been around since mid-2014, according to Know Your Meme. He's used sarcastically whenever you say something extra-judgmental to someone, usually about something they're doing you do not approve of. Usage of the meme was really popular through the latter half of 2014, but since the beginning of 2015, it's mostly died out.
"Good Morning America," however, decided they wanted to bring Kermit back to life online, and give him a new name in the process, #tealizard.
Obviously "But that's none of my business" is a little long for a tweet, but changing it to "#tealizard" is just...very wrong. Did no one on the GMA social media team recognize Kermit, the very famous character owned by GMA's parent company, Disney? Does he look like a lizard just because he's green? Pretty bigoted there, GMA.
Of course, as Twitter does, they had a field day with #TeaLizard.
Of course, there were puns.
People were quick to point out to GMA that it wasn't just meme culture they got wrong, but science as well.
People wondered how the meme destruction could get past so many people.
Perhaps the best part, though, is that GMA may have accidentally started a new meme for the internet to enjoy.
It's a rough time for Miss Piggy, though. Please keep her, and all the Muppets, in your thoughts.