Culture

The ABC Has Absolutely Roasted Australia In A Single Tweet

The only good use of 280 characters.

by Rob Stott  10 November 2017
ABC

Want more Junkee in your life? Sign up to our newsletter, and follow us on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook so you always know where to find us.

Earlier this week, Twitter announced that every user would now be able to send 280 character tweets. You’d be forgiven for thinking that nothing good could possibly come from doubling the amount of Twitter in existence, and until this morning, I would have agreed with you.

This morning, the ABC Grandstand Twitter account took full use of those extra characters to tweet a roast of Australia that was so pure it should automatically qualify for inclusion in the national archives.

“The Socceroos’ elongated path to #WorldCup qualification takes them to a country with a constitutional crisis, chronic political instability and an appalling human rights record — but first, they must play in Honduras,” the tweet read, before linking out to a blog post by columnist Richard Hinds.

It’s funny, y’see, because while all of things mentioned in the tweet apply to Honduras, they also apply to Australia, which is currently in the middle of what could best be described as a citizenship clusterfuck. That’s the joke.

The column itself is a pretty good analysis of Australia’s upcoming World Cup qualifier against Honduras, so give it a read if you’re into that sort of thing. But if you’re only here for the quality banter, you can stop after the second sentence.

Reactions to the tweet are mixed. Most people are just praising the quality sledge.

While a few people pointed out that the tweet will probably become the target of anti-ABC conservatives who love any opportunity to attack the national broadcaster.

So yes, I have written an entire story about a single tweet, but I’m ok with that. My tip for the rest of the day is that this tweet becomes the next Very Dumb Australian Political Controversy.