Have you heard about Carson King? He’s an Iowa man who held up a funny sign on ESPN College Gameday that asked for people to Venmo him money so he could buy beer. Well, people obliged and instead of keeping the money for himself, he said he would donate all of it (except for 1 case of beer) to the University of Iowa’s Stead Family Children’s Hospital:
With all the donations my @CollegeGameDay sign for @BuschBeer has received, I will be donating all but enough for a case of Busch Light to @uiowa Children’s Hospital. We’re at over $1,600.00 right now! @CycloneATH @WideRtNattyLt @ChrisMWilliams Venmo Carson-King-25
— Carson King (@CarsonKing2) September 14, 2019
He’s raised over $1 million so far for the hospital:
Kid With "Busch Light Supply Needs Replenished: Venmo @ Carson-King-25" Sign On College Gameday Gets Over ONE MILLION DOLLARS – Gives All Of It (Except For 1 Case Of Busch Light) To Children's Hospitalhttps://t.co/sin8tEMNPn pic.twitter.com/jU6kUA0kMY
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) September 24, 2019
A hero, right?
We can’t think—our minds are blown by all of this! ? Thank you to everyone who helped reach this milestone! We’re so grateful! ?
— UI Stead Family Children's Hospital (@UIchildrens) September 22, 2019
Wrong! Here comes the milkshake ducking via Des Moines Register reporter Aaron Calvin who dug up a few old tweets from when King was 16-years-old. From the Washington Post:
King’s social media missteps came to light after Calvin, a trending news reporter at the Register, delved far back into the casino security guard’s old tweets. Calvin discovered two 2012 tweets, written when King was in high school, that the Register described as “racist jokes, one comparing black mothers to gorillas and another making light of black people killed in the holocaust.” When Calvin asked King about the tweets, he told the reporter seeing them made him feel “sick.”
WTF, Des Moines Register? Why do this?
“Hey, this Carson King guy raised $1 million for a children’s hospital. Let’s see if we can find anything bad he might have posted as a teenager and spoil this kindness for everyone!”
Seriously, what is wrong w people? Who does this? Who thinks this way? Get a life.
— Carol Roth (@caroljsroth) September 25, 2019
Why https://t.co/mbLjpR0TSj thought Carson King needed a "routine" social media check going back 8 years because of his generosity is beyond me. If you're bored at work, find a story. Don't try to ruin people.
— Jessica Fletcher (@heckyessica) September 25, 2019
Nobody can seem to even find the tweets that were so offensive, but “it literally doesn’t matter. This is a war”:
I spent a few minutes trying to find the “offensive tweets” that got Anheuser-Busch to drop King, and I can’t find them. And you know what? It doesn’t matter. It literally doesn’t matter. This is a war. https://t.co/SkE4LUegMf
— Andrew Kloster (@ARKloster) September 25, 2019
Even worse? Anheuser-Busch cut ties with King over it:
BREAKING — Anheuser-Busch to cut ties with Carson King over multiple offensive social media posts https://t.co/mICVWN9L7S pic.twitter.com/AowgwP5m5o
— KCCI News (@KCCINews) September 25, 2019
Bad move, crappy beer company. Bad move:
Do you believe Anheuser-Busch was right in disassociating from GameDay/Children’s Hospital fundraiser Carson King for distasteful tweets written eight years ago, and unearthed by the Des Moines Register today?
— Darren Rovell (@darrenrovell) September 25, 2019
King has since apologized:
The Des Moines Register has been nothing but kind in all of their coverage, and I appreciate the reporter pointing out the post to me. I want everyone to understand that this was my decision to publicly address the posts and apologize. I believe that is the right thing to do.
— Carson King (@CarsonKing2) September 25, 2019
— Carson King (@CarsonKing2) September 25, 2019
Now for the “cowardly part.” The DMR reporter who unearthed the tweets from the local hero has now made his account private after his own vile tweets were uncovered:
If Carson King had been defiant about the two tweets from when he was 16 or doubled down, I would get why the Register would mention them but according the paper, he was deeply remorseful. I fail to see how it was newsworthy, especially given the good work he’s been doing
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) September 25, 2019
2. With respect to this story, the Register and the reporter @aaronpcalvin don’t deserve this level of kindness but here we are. https://t.co/UQm4NrL7t1
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) September 25, 2019
3. What a hypocritical disgrace. https://t.co/MgoYZLYOJh
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) September 25, 2019
4. If you’re going to pull up someone’s old tweets, write about them, and you have old racist tweets of your own, at least have the courage to take the heat, @aaronpcalvin.
Taking your account private is cowardly. pic.twitter.com/SdCEfg1A6Q
— Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) September 25, 2019
But we have screenshots:
– "I want to grow up and read sex scenes to high schoolers."
– "can I be a guest instructor at your theater camp teaching the kids how to abuse substances and 'turn tricks.'”
Both quotes from Aaron Calvin. #CarsonKing https://t.co/8SbIDJhn0x
— Mike Cernovich (@Cernovich) September 25, 2019
A Des Moines Register reporter digs up tweets of a 16 year old Carson King – the dude who raised $1 million+ for child cancer – and prepares to expose him.
The internet does their own digging on the reporter and guess what they find? https://t.co/uDsB2wbI1j pic.twitter.com/nZ1bujXmW9
— Kmarko (@Kmarkobarstool) September 25, 2019
Good luck with what’s about to happen next.
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