Nearly 24 hours after Twitter was set aflame by a Babylon Bee story claiming that Donald Trump had promised that Vivek Ramaswamy would be given a position 'running the White House 7-Eleven' the story continues to roil through the news cycle. The CEO of the Babylon Bee, Seth Dillon, has been tweeting out... defenses of the piece and the tweet, although it's debatable whether the piece needs a defense and they aren't even defenses so good for him we guess!
Some of our readers have expressed concern about this report, suggesting it did not meet the high journalistic standards they've come to expect from us. We want you to know that we've listened to you. We've heard your voices. And they are stupid. https://t.co/7uJVsnUbYA
— Seth Dillon (@SethDillon) January 17, 2024
— Seth Dillon (@SethDillon) January 17, 2024
Kyle Mann, Editor-in-Chief of the Bee, also doesn't seem to be overly worried about 'backlash' against the publication for this joke or that any apology is necessary, since he spent much of today responding to people complaining at him with a form of the same tweet:
It's a little more complicated of a joke than we usually tell, so I understand why it's confusing. Let me try and explain:
— Kyle Mann (@The_Kyle_Mann) January 17, 2024
It's that Trump promised Vivek an administration position running the white house 7-Eleven.
Hope this helps. https://t.co/tuJK3wroEU
The joke is that Trump promised vivek an administration position running the white house 7-Eleven. Hope this helps. https://t.co/OlZ70LE62y
— Kyle Mann (@The_Kyle_Mann) January 17, 2024
It may not be universally true that there's no such thing as bad publicity, but in this case the staff at the Bee clearly don't feel like they're getting the worse end of this... and they're probably right.
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Vivek Ramaswamy himself has responded to the whole controversy-nontroversy with good humor and grace.
I’m a “survivor” 😂 https://t.co/Dx7yGeWdcJ
— Vivek Ramaswamy (@VivekGRamaswamy) January 17, 2024
Earning the Twitter form of a hearty slap on the back from Mann:
How keyboard warriors respond to a joke about Vivek
— Kyle Mann (@The_Kyle_Mann) January 17, 2024
vs.
How Vivek responds to a joke about Vivek pic.twitter.com/dyzkvgzSi1
As the whole kerfuffle continues to cause a stir it was inevitable that other businesses would notice and decide to grab a quick shot of publicity off of it... and Bucc-ee's, always on the forefront of nontraditional marketing tactics, was quick to jump in with both feet.
If @VivekGRamaswamy needs a job, I know some brisket that needs chopped.
— Buc-ee’s SuperStore | The Fun Store Lampoon (@BuceesUSA) January 17, 2024
That'll get the tongues wagging!
The original joke sure looked like it was aimed more at former President Donald Trump and perceptions of what his perception of a job to give an Indian-American like Mr. Ramaswamy would be, but never doubt that if a joke is told there will always be a flood of people looking to be offended on someone else's behalf in the replies. That's just the way of the modern world, it seems. But come on... lighten up folks. If Vivek is taking this in good grace and in stride maybe it's time for the rest of us to do it as well... right?
What do you think? Did the Bee go too far?
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