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---
title: Sean Spicer, United Airlines, Pepsi Meme: Internet Reactions
description: After a week of news dominated by three major public relations blunders, the Internet is having a field day with the resulting fallout.
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author: Megan McCluskey
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article:published_time: 2017-04-12T17:30:53.000Z
article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T07:42:44.677Z
og:title: Sean Spicer-United-Pepsi Is the Internet&#x27;s Latest Meme
og:description: The sum of all PR nightmares
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twitter:title: Sean Spicer-United-Pepsi Is the Internet&#x27;s Latest Meme
twitter:description: The sum of all PR nightmares
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![](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb0509b8c9e049eff/6988c17b656a3f58fabcf6bb/jenner-pepsi.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9)


# Internet Miraculously Wraps Pepsi, United Airlines and Sean Spicer Into One Meme

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![Megan McCluskey](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf85e445233dc41d2/698940894ee2620cd9313802/m_mccluskey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1:1)

by 

[Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)


![Megan McCluskey](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf85e445233dc41d2/698940894ee2620cd9313802/m_mccluskey.jpg?branch=production&width=96&quality=75&auto=webp)

## Megan McCluskey


Staff Writer

Apr 12, 2017 5:30 PM UTC

![](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb0509b8c9e049eff/6988c17b656a3f58fabcf6bb/jenner-pepsi.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=3:2)

![Megan McCluskey](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf85e445233dc41d2/698940894ee2620cd9313802/m_mccluskey.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1:1)

by 

[Megan McCluskey](https://time.com/author/megan-mccluskey/)


![Megan McCluskey](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltf85e445233dc41d2/698940894ee2620cd9313802/m_mccluskey.jpg?branch=production&width=96&quality=75&auto=webp)

## Megan McCluskey


Staff Writer

Apr 12, 2017 5:30 PM UTC

After a week of news dominated by not one, not two, but three major [public relations disasters](http://time.com/4702654/uber-drivers-on-public-relations/), the Internet is pretty much having a field day.

So of course, it seems only logical for the online fallout resulting from the trio of blunders — [Pepsi’s controversial Kendall Jenner ad](http://time.com/4726500/pepsi-ad-kendall-jenner/), [United Airlines’ overbooking crisis](http://time.com/4732783/united-airlines-man-doctor-removed-overbooked-flight/) and [Sean Spicer’s Hitler comments](http://time.com/4734994/sean-spicer-syria-adolph-hitler-chemical-weapons-holocaust/) — to culminate in one meme that perfectly encapsulates the dreadful series of missteps. And that’s exactly what Twitter user [Chris Melberger](https://twitter.com/chrismelberger/status/851928818017239041/photo/1) has created.

“If Twitter this past week was a person here he is,” Melberger captioned an image — which has since garnered over 21,000 likes and nearly 12,000 retweets — of Sean Spicer holding a Pepsi while dressed as a United pilot.

> [](https://twitter.com/chrismelberger/status/851928818017239041)

Other Twitter users were quick to respond in kind, offering their own takes on the situation.

> [](https://twitter.com/JoeGlo1/status/851861644690980864)


> [](https://twitter.com/BradMossEsq/status/851862889782759429)

> [](https://twitter.com/MEPFuller/status/851871982471786498)

> [](https://twitter.com/MikeNellis/status/851861307087347713)


> [](https://twitter.com/michaelsluciano/status/851883579923628032)

> [](https://twitter.com/campaignbear/status/851918006909382664)

> [](https://twitter.com/AngelaBelcamino/status/851953723567951873)


> [](https://twitter.com/politics%5Fn%5Fprep/status/851925593633550336)

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