On Thursday, Weight Watchers debuted its latest social media campaign with a promoted tweet, #thisismyWW. The brand, which changed its name to WW in 2018, likely thought this was an uplifting message, intended to encourage its members to share their goals for the new year.
But after an American airstrike last night killed Iran’s Maj. Gen. Qassim Suleimani—a move that further escalated conflict between the two countries and prompted fears that it could lead to World War 3—the campaign took on a different tone. Hashtags like #WorldWarIII started trending alongside #thisismyWW, and the Twitterati took note.
Weight Watchers might want to pull this trending hashtag campaign pic.twitter.com/pAp0WMJQJl
— Colin Jones (@colinjones) January 3, 2020
Weight Watchers probably regretting their promoted hashtag tonight pic.twitter.com/9QNNYdFETh
— Chelsea Fagan (@Chelsea_Fagan) January 3, 2020
https://twitter.com/bobbyfinger/status/1212941949956763648
Some people did, indeed, share their plans for eating healthy in 2020. But others assumed the hashtag was a reference to World War III or pointed out that “WW”—which, unlike the famous 57-year-old Weight Watchers brand, remains largely unfamiliar—could be mistaken for a number of other things. Which is to say: This ill-timed campaign may not be the only thing WW regrets right about now.