Duolingo – yes, the language app that terrorizes people – is under fire for posting an NSFW tweet about Katy Perry on their social media.
Until a few days ago, the Duolingo app was famous for terrorizing people into doing their daily lessons so they could ask someone where the horse would drink coffee in a different language. Now the app and its mascot – a green owl – are being criticized for making an NSFW comment about Katy Perry.
A few days ago, a clip of Katy Perry doused in green slime at the Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice Awards began doing the rounds on the internet. Someone from Duolingo’s social media team must have stumbled upon it and decided to retweet it with the caption: “Wait, that’s my -”
wait is that my – https://t.co/PtWeGXulJ7
— Duolingo (@duolingo) October 12, 2022
Yeah. Needless to say, the implication of what they meant was not lost on people. And while a few were down for the joke, others pointed out that the joke was inappropriate for an educational app hosting a large number of children as customers.
“Hi Duo, my 12 year old son is working on his Italian and loves the app. He asks me what this tweet is about, can you explain to him? A Twitter user replied below the tweet. To this, the account has doubled up and said, “Perdón, no respondo al inglés.” (Sorry, I don’t answer in English.)
In another tweet, the account defended the initial tweet and said, “We’re all thinking about it, I just said that.” In another tweet, he added, “^^ this is your sign to log out of Twitter and do your lesson.”
Perdón, no answer al inglés.
— Duolingo (@duolingo) October 13, 2022
For context, that’s not too out of place for the app – perhaps a way to capitalize on a cult-favorite app that often gets the same treatment from fans. On Tiktok, for example, the app is famous for craving Dua Lipa, even going so far as to ask for “feet pics.”
This isn’t the first time their jokes have sparked controversy, however. At the height of the Johnny Depp-Amber Heard lawsuit, the brand was criticized for shedding light on the case. The comment was later deleted and the employee apologized.
On what planet a brand – even @duolingo – do you think it’s cool to make jokes about an alleged victim of domestic violence? The Depp fandom bubble on TikTok is real, but no brand should come close to it. pic.twitter.com/HvvtrKDoRg
— Chris Harihar (@ChrisHarihar) May 18, 2022
“I made a mistake. It’s being deleted and I’m listening. I’m 24 – a year out of college – running an account that I didn’t expect to grow the way it did. did it and I’m learning social responsibility on a curve Full support It’s an early career lesson for me and I’m learning how to be better says the employee.
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