A New York Times columnist’s attempt to fightback against a tweet insulting him has massively backfired.
The long, ridiculous story began when Dr David Karpf, a professor at George Washington University, tweeted a joke comparing Brett Stephens, a conservative writer, to a “bedbug”.
The bedbugs are a metaphor. The bedbugs are Bret Stephens. https://t.co/k4qo6QzIBW— dave karpf (@dave karpf) 1566853675
The tweet was mildly successful at best (receiving nine likes and zero retweets) until Karpf found a strange email in his inbox from the Pulitzer Prize winning journalist.
This afternoon, I tweeted a brief joke about a well-known NYT op-Ed columnist. It got 9 likes and 0 retweets. I d… https://t.co/9eFtAghjja— dave karpf (@dave karpf) 1566868953
Stephens wrote:
Dear Dr Karpf,
Someone just pointed out a tweet you wrote about me, calling me a “bedbug.” I’m often amazed about the things supposedly decent people are prepared to say about other people – people they’ve never met – on Twitter. I think you’ve set a new standard.
I would welcome the opportunity for you to come to my home, meet my wife and kids, talk to us for a few minutes, and then call me a “bedbug” to my face.
“Someone just pointed out…” is a funny way to say “I searched my own name on Twitter” but okay…
He might have hoped that the email would finish the issue, but Karpf had other ideas and decided to share the message on his account.
Within a few hours, Karpf's original tweet had gone viral.
Some people pointed out how ridiculous it was for Stephens, a columnist who has fought against “safe spaces”, to be so easily wound-up by the insult.
Bret Stephens, a guy who professionally laments "PC culture" and "safe spaces" is upset someone jokingly called him… https://t.co/zW7Ko7SfkA— jordan (@jordan) 1566873964
People like Bret Stephens believe in the marketplace of ideas until they realize you can’t ask to speak to a manager— Sam Adams (@Sam Adams) 1566911549
While others noted how the email was a completely insane overreaction.
https://t.co/aVNitSHXfr— Ashley Feinberg (@Ashley Feinberg) 1566878549
For context, it’s worth understanding that Stephens has been a controversial figure for a long time – due to his scepticism towards the threat of climate change, his criticism of Palestine and his support for the Iraq War.
After the ridicule got too much for him, the NYT columnist decided to delete his Twitter account and blamed the website for “bringing out the worst in humanity”.
And we’re not finished yet…
You might have thought Stephens would want to lie low for a bit now, get his thoughts together and come back when he’s calmed down – but instead, he decided to go on MSNBC this morning to talk about the controversy…
First, Stephens denied that he was attempting to get Karpf in trouble by including his boss in the email.
And then he went on to unbelievably claim that the bedbug joke was somehow akin to the language of “totalitarian regimes”.
On MSNBC, Bret Stephens characterizes Dr Dave Karpf referring to him as a metaphorical "bedbug" on Twitter as akin… https://t.co/juRd8VeQU7— Aaron Rupar (@Aaron Rupar) 1566913201
The whole story is a perfect example of the “Streisand effect” – named after Barbara Streisand’s failed attempt to stop the media photographing her residence in Malibu.
The 'Streisand effect' occurs when the attempt to cover something up only brings it more attention or notoriety. https://t.co/VgBJObll5g— Merriam-Webster (@Merriam-Webster) 1566873714
If Stephens had just left the tweet alone and moved on with his life, he would still have his Twitter account and his dignity intact.
Of course, he is always welcome back to Twitter anytime - as soon as he can handle being roasted again.
bret stephens would not survive 3 minutes of being a woman on twitter tbh— Talia Lavin (@Talia Lavin) 1566873213